By Grace Malec, Asst. Editor-in-Chief
Flock Safety License Plate Reading Camera – Photo by the Kettering
Driving through Grand Rapids and surrounding areas, you may have noticed a new, strange looking object planted on the side of the road near traffic lights, highways, intersections or just any ordinary roads.
These distinct-looking traffic cameras are called Flock Safety cameras. A topic of controversy nation-wide.
According to Flock Safety, these cameras are “technology that helps agencies locate missing people, recover stolen vehicles and investigate crime more quickly by helping them search for evidence relevant to an authorized investigation.”
The company describes the devices as license plate readers, which has helped locate over 10,000 missing people in 2025 alone. They do not utilize facial recognition technology, identify who is inside the vehicle or continuously track people or vehicles.
Data is automatically deleted by Flock after seven days, and the agencies control which data is shared with whom, although Flock has made it transparent that they do not contract with ICE or Palantir.
Over 3,646 cameras reported in the state of Michigan alone, the conversation about these traffic cameras is only continuing to grow.
Map of Flock Cameras in the State of Michigan – Photo by Flocklocations
With the lack of transparency about the Flock’s true use by police departments and with individuals not taking initiative to do research on their own time through Flock’s resources about their uses, it is easy to be fearful and view them negatively.
On Grand Valley State University’s Campus, a university close in proximity to Aquinas, an incident occurred where an individual cut and set fire to a Flock camera less than a week into the fall semester, which is actively under investigation.
Although there are no Flock cameras directly on the campus of Aquinas College, they are starting to be reported in surrounding areas such as on Fulton street and Fuller street.
TheSaint has reached out to Campus Safety requesting a quote but has yet to receive a response.
With hot topics such as Flock cameras in the news, the importance of researching and educating yourself on what the true uses and purposes of things such as Flock are at an all time high.
