August 28, 2026 — Americans are increasingly turning against a surveillance technology that has rapidly expanded across the country, with a new survey showing that more people now oppose police use of automated license-plate readers than support it.
The shift comes as concerns grow over privacy, government surveillance and the possibility that police officers could misuse vast databases containing information about where people drive.
The technology, commonly known as automated license-plate recognition, or ALPR, uses cameras to photograph passing vehicles and record license-plate numbers along with details such as the time and location. Police departments can then search the information during criminal investigations.
Public support has reversed
A YouGov survey of roughly 20,000 U.S. adults found that 46 percent opposed the use of license-plate readers by law enforcement in their communities, while 38 percent supported the technology.
That represents a notable change from the previous year, when 45 percent supported the cameras and only 33 percent opposed them.
The reversal suggests that growing awareness of how the technology works — and how the collected information can potentially be misused — is changing public attitudes.
The Washington Post reported that the survey was conducted through YouGov's opt-in online panel and weighted to reflect population demographics, political affiliation and the 2024 presidential vote.
Privacy is becoming the central concern
The cameras are designed to help police identify stolen vehicles, locate missing people and investigate serious crimes. Law enforcement agencies argue that the technology can provide investigators with information that would otherwise take significant time and resources to obtain.
But critics say the systems do much more than identify suspects.
Because cameras can record vehicles belonging to people who have committed no crime, the technology can create detailed records of ordinary Americans' movements. Those records can potentially reveal visits to sensitive locations, relationships and patterns of daily life.
A separate survey of about 1,000 adults found that more than half considered protecting privacy more important than giving police additional tools to fight crime.
Around 70 percent also said government surveillance had increased substantially during the past 25 years, with roughly half saying the amount of monitoring had become excessive.
Bipartisan opposition is growing
The backlash is unusual because it crosses traditional political boundaries.
Conservatives have raised concerns about government overreach and individual liberty, while civil-rights advocates and progressives have warned about police power, immigration enforcement and potential discrimination.
The Washington Post has reported that Republican and Democratic lawmakers have increasingly questioned the technology, helping turn license-plate surveillance into a rare bipartisan political issue.
The survey found particularly broad support for requiring police to obtain a warrant before accessing license-plate data. About three-quarters of Democrats and roughly six in 10 Republicans and independents supported such a requirement.
Currently, police generally do not need a warrant to conduct searches of many ALPR databases.
Misuse cases fuel the backlash
Public concern has intensified following reports of officers using the technology for purposes unrelated to legitimate police investigations.
The Washington Post previously reported that dozens of law-enforcement officials have been accused, charged or convicted of misusing license-plate readers, including cases involving officers allegedly using the technology to monitor former romantic partners.
Those cases have reinforced concerns that a system created to help investigate serious crimes can potentially become a tool for personal surveillance.
The issue is particularly sensitive because license-plate databases can contain information about innocent motorists who may never know their movements have been recorded.
Flock has become the focus of the debate
Among the companies facing scrutiny, Flock Safety has emerged as the most visible target.
The company has installed more than 120,000 cameras nationwide, according to the Washington Post, and says its technology helps law enforcement investigate hundreds of thousands of crimes.
Flock and other industry supporters argue that the cameras are not designed to constantly identify people but instead to help police investigate vehicles connected to crimes.
The company has also pushed back against criticism of the technology, saying surveys can produce different results depending on how questions describe its crime-fighting benefits.
Company introduces new safeguards
The growing controversy has already prompted Flock to change how its system operates.
The company announced in August that law-enforcement customers would face stricter requirements, including linking searches to criminal case numbers and using tools designed to detect unusual search activity.
Flock also said it would reduce its standard data-retention period from 30 days to seven, while allowing information connected to active cases to be preserved for longer.
The changes are intended to prevent unauthorized searches and reassure communities that their vehicle data will not remain accessible indefinitely.
Privacy advocates, however, have argued that company policies alone cannot resolve concerns about warrantless searches and government access to large-scale movement data.
Communities are reconsidering contracts
The backlash has already reached local governments.
According to tracking cited by The Washington Post, dozens of communities and law-enforcement agencies have canceled, suspended or rejected contracts involving Flock cameras this year. Some communities have also seen cameras vandalized amid growing anger over surveillance.
For local officials, the debate is increasingly about whether the potential investigative benefits justify the privacy risks.
Some residents say they support cameras for specific purposes, such as finding stolen cars or missing children, but oppose systems that allow police to reconstruct the movements of people who are not suspected of crimes.
Americans still see some benefits
The survey does not show that Americans universally reject the technology.
Large numbers of respondents supported using license-plate readers to locate stolen vehicles, find missing people and investigate violent crimes.
The disagreement centers more heavily on how far police should be allowed to go.
Many respondents opposed using the systems to track political protesters, people with temporary legal immigration status or pregnant women in states where abortion is restricted.
More than four in 10 respondents also believed officers sometimes or often use the cameras to stalk or harass individuals or build cases against innocent people.
A growing debate over surveillance
The changing public mood could put additional pressure on police departments, technology companies and lawmakers to establish clearer limits on automated license-plate surveillance.
Supporters say the technology gives investigators a powerful tool for solving serious crimes. Critics counter that public safety should not require Americans to accept continuous tracking of their movements.
The survey indicates that the balance between those competing priorities may be shifting.
As license-plate networks continue to expand, Americans appear increasingly focused not only on what the cameras can help police accomplish, but also on who can access the information, how long it is stored and what safeguards prevent it from being abused.
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