Cops Search Thousands of Flock Cameras for Reasons of ‘LMAO,’ ‘IDK,’ ‘Hehe,’ and ‘asdfg’ (www.404media.co)
from technocrit@lemmy.dbzer0.com to privacy@lemmy.ml on 15 Sep 17:44
https://lemmy.dbzer0.com/post/75519937

The EFF found cops writing “idiot,” “WEIRD KID,” “blah,” “leave me alone,” and button mashing in Flock’s ‘reason’ box.

#privacy

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PattyMcB@lemmy.world on 15 Sep 18:02 next collapse

ACAB. Flock is big brother

UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world on 15 Sep 18:17 next collapse

It’s as much a joke to them as it is to the rest of us. The most flaccid form of oversight imaginable.

SeeMarkFly@lemmy.ml on 15 Sep 18:44 next collapse

Any tool can be used for good or evil.

TIL cops are evil.

humble_boatsman@sh.itjust.works on 15 Sep 21:36 collapse

Today? Have you been under a rock?

SeeMarkFly@lemmy.ml on 15 Sep 23:32 collapse

I have to give them the benefit of the doubt. They were hired by the city.

I now have PROOF that I did not have before.

Maybe the city is evil too? I’ll start looking into that now.

LiamTheBox@lemmy.ml on 15 Sep 19:19 next collapse

A cop who wrote “idiot” got away with it because by the time the department learned about it, it had passed a 90-day time period in which the cop’s union contract allowed for internal investigations.

yucandu@lemmy.world on 15 Sep 21:54 collapse

Really gotta figure out how they negotiated that “you can’t fire me if you catch me 90 days late” clause.

FauxLiving@lemmy.world on 16 Sep 01:28 collapse

It helps when you’re both sides of the negotiation.

Babalugats@feddit.uk on 15 Sep 19:22 next collapse

I don’t get why this comes as such as big surprise. It’s human nature. I grew up watching funny home videos and CCTV videos etc. Cops have access to the system, I think most others would abuse it the same way.

It’s a gross invasion of privacy and Flock should be banned everywhere. it’s disgusting how it can easily be abused and should be avoided at all costs. Imagine what Joseph James DeAngelo would have done with access to Flock.

Catching a quick glimpse of a person that they deemed attractive could end up being high end stalking.

The bad very much outweighs any good that these cameras are alleged to help with. Fucking traffic violations?

Okay, maybe tracking a murderer etc. might be a good use of the system, but the ratio of that happening, and what they are being used for is ridiculous.

grue@lemmy.world on 15 Sep 20:46 next collapse

The bad very much outweighs any good that these cameras are alleged to help with. Fucking traffic violations?

Okay, maybe tracking a murderer etc. might be a good use of the system, but the ratio of that happening, and what they are being used for is ridiculous.

I reject the notion that mass surveillance has any valid use whatsoever, even including tracking murderers. The mere existence of the system has chilling effects on the non-criminal citizenry that makes it absolutely categorically unacceptable regardless of what alleged benefits it tries to claim.

Babalugats@feddit.uk on 15 Sep 21:04 collapse

Ah yeah, I don’t agree with it either, but if pushed and playing devil’s advocate, I can see that it might help catch a murderer or rapist.

It still doesn’t outweigh the bad that it does though, imho.

yucandu@lemmy.world on 15 Sep 21:56 collapse

I always respond with “so would putting a GPS tracker on all of us and tracking our every movement, officer.”

gary_host_laptop@lemmy.ml on 15 Sep 21:25 next collapse

its not human nature, it’s a combination of capitalism plus good ol burger reich sadism.

Sanguine@lemmy.dbzer0.com on 15 Sep 21:49 next collapse

Most people might, a lot of people appreciate a little gossip, drama. However, ones integrity must take over when in positions of power. What we are seeing is that the cops implicated here, and their protectors, are lacking integrity.

yucandu@lemmy.world on 15 Sep 21:56 next collapse

Imagine what Joseph James DeAngelo would have done with access to Flock.

Catching a quick glimpse of a person that they deemed attractive could end up being high end stalking.

That’s already happened:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HIUpsUP3Lk

“Cop hunts down actress with ‘license plate cameras’ [read: Flock]”

isleepinahammock@lemmy.blahaj.zone on 16 Sep 00:18 collapse

Exactly. If we’re going to have these systems at all, they should be retroactive-only and require a warrant to access at all. For example, if some masked person robs a bank and gets away, at that point police can go to a judge and ask for a warrant to access the camera records. They can then hopefully use the records to catch the thief. But there should be no way to access the camera feeds live, and all access should require a warrant. In fact, the police shouldn’t even have accounts to access the cameras. There should be an office within the court system, and that office should be the only people that can access the camera footage.

mr_MADAFAKA@lemmy.ml on 15 Sep 19:27 next collapse

www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtnmvOP703A — reminds me of this

RedSnt@feddit.dk on 15 Sep 20:30 next collapse

Odd how similar those reasons are to my git push messages…

WrenHavoc@lemmy.dbzer0.com on 16 Sep 14:10 collapse

They are your git push messages

RedSnt@feddit.dk on 16 Sep 14:14 collapse

Good thing I only use git for my dot files, I’m luckily only pissing future me off ;)

folaht@lemmy.ml on 16 Sep 15:18 collapse

NixOS user?

RedSnt@feddit.dk on 16 Sep 17:14 collapse

Not yet, but I’ve definitely been thinking about it. But for now it’s mainly just a backup for my config files just in case.

derry@midwest.social on 15 Sep 22:06 next collapse

Shocked. Well not shocked. Surprised. Well not surprised. Mildly amused. Well. What an absurd time we live in.

artyom@piefed.social on 16 Sep 02:52 next collapse

The fact that these even exist is bad enough, but the fact that they simply just allow such blatant abuses is unconscionable. Every one of these “reasons” need to be audited. Realistically, they should require a warrant.

kent_eh@lemmy.ca on 16 Sep 14:58 next collapse

Realistically, they should require a warrant.

Legally they should require a warrant.

HerbGrower@slrpnk.net on 16 Sep 15:06 collapse

If they don’t have good reasons it sounds like they are wasting time on the job

heartSagan5@lemmy.zip on 16 Sep 03:38 next collapse

The reason box should require a warrant number. What the fuck.

WrenHavoc@lemmy.dbzer0.com on 16 Sep 14:09 next collapse

I love how actual news stories sound like posts from the onion now.

geneva_convenience@lemmy.ml on 16 Sep 15:27 collapse

Hehe