AI Cameras Track You in Costa Mesa
A private company called Flock owns 46 AI powered cameras logging everyone who drives in Costa Mesa.
What is Flock?
Anywhere you drive through Costa Mesa, a private company called Flock uses AI powered "Automated License Plate Reader" (ALPR) cameras record your license plate, vehicle's make and model, the time, your exact location, and even bumper stickers or damage for "fingerprinting" your vehicle.
Your doctor's visit? Logged. Children's school drop-offs? Monitored. Anytime you drive, Flock's privately controlled database knows and follows - with no warrant, no cause, no suspicion, and no consent.
Flock allows "customers" to access your real-time and historical data. CMPD (and the hundreds of agencies they share your data with) are the "customers" - your data is the product. Americans criticize foreign totalitarian governments for mass surveillance; now, we're paying Flock to impose it on us at home.
On July 21 2026 at 6 pm, Costa Mesa city council will vote on whether to end the Flock contract. Although dozens of cities nationwide - including LA - have already done so, Costa Mesa could proudly be the historic first in Orange County. Your support at this meeting is crucial to ensure your rights and American values are respected at home!
What can you do? A lot!
Speak at the City Council vote on July 21 at 6pm to say YES to ending Mass Surveillance in Costa Mesa
Add July 21 to Your Calendar
Missed the last training? Join Indivisible Orange on Thurs, 7/16 6:30 - 7:30 PM for a Deflock training & information session
Sign the petition below to urge the Council to Get the Flock out of Costa Mesa and instead prioritize community-based public safety that respect the rights, dignity, and safety of all residents.
Learn More:
What are Flock cameras and ALPR?
Automated License Plate Readers (ALPR) like Flock are corporate-owned cameras that use AI to log every license plate that drives by into a database. In Costa Mesa there are 46 cameras that logged over 1,600,000 unique plates in the past 30 days.
Who can access the data?
Costa Mesa shares your data with hundreds of other agencies, many of which are known to share your data illegally with ICE, Border Patrol, and others. Flock is being sued for enabling unlawful sharing of your data with out-of-state agencies.
Is the data at least protected?
Researchers have hacked it in under 30 seconds, found cameras broadcasting online, and reported Flock logins on the Russian dark web, enabling anyone with cash to access. Legal guardrails have proven unable to stop illegal access and abuse. Since the data exists when it shouldn't, it's at constant risk of loss, abuse, or theft.
Is abuse hypothetical or actually real?
Costa Mesa police have abused Flock to stalk women. Nationwide, abuses include Flock employees spying on childrens' gymnastics, Texas police hunting women who travel for medical care, and much more. What is known is a fraction of ongoing abuse.
How does Flock make Money?
Flock persuades police departments that expensive, oppressive surveillance is necessary - while creating the data that makes us less safe. Costa Mesa alone pays roughly $450,000 of our tax money to install cameras, train Flock's AI, access the data, & share your movements without warrant or consent. This money could instead fund parks, safer streets, resident services, and infrastructure - without creating a civil rights crisis and exposing even more of your data to breach and abuse.
To contact us for questions, suggestions, or community engagement, please reach out to deflockcostamesa@proton.me. We will respond as soon as we can, but please allow 24 - 48 hours; we're all volunteers!