BEHIND THE SCREEN IT IS NOT JUST A CAMERA

Understanding the data behind Cookeville’s Flock cameras

This is my first official column, and it feels fitting to begin with a subject I care deeply about: technology, what it can do and how we make sure it does not come at the expense of our rights.

As chief technology and production operations officer for Reaves & Williams Publishing Group, I have worked in and around technology in various forms for more than 10 years. I have also studied technology at Tennessee Tech and spent years working with cameras, video, livestreaming, websites, software and data systems.

I am not anti-technology. I use it every day, and I believe it can make our communities safer and better informed. But I also believe we should be careful about the systems we build and the information we collect.

That is why I was pretty disappointed with the Cookeville City Council’s decision Thursday night to approve a two-year, $60,000 contract for the city’s 10 existing Flock cameras.

I was at the meeting as a photographer and videographer. I listened as residents shared concerns about privacy, surveillance and the amount of information these systems can collect. All but one person who addressed the proposal opposed it.

The council did not have to agree with everyone, but I believe it should have delayed the vote. There were too many serious questions to move ahead without taking more time.

I agree that police officers need the right resources to keep our community safe. If these cameras help locate a stolen vehicle, find a missing person or identify a vehicle connected to a serious crime, that is a good thing.

But Flock is not just a camera taking a picture of a license plate.

The camera takes multiple high-speed photographs. Artificial intelligence selects an image and processes details that can include the plate number, time, location, direction of travel, make, model, color, damage, alterations, bumper stickers and roof racks.

The system then creates what Flock calls a “vehicle fingerprint.” Authorized users can search the records by license plate, vehicle description, location or geographic area.

That is not simply a photograph. It is a searchable data system.

A person standing on the side of the road might see my vehicle pass. They will probably forget about it a few minutes later. A Flock system can record the vehicle, attach a time and location, identify its characteristics and preserve that information so it can be searched later.

Those are not the same thing.

One record may not tell someone much. But when you combine records from several cameras, you can begin to build a timeline. Add cameras from other communities or information shared between agencies, and the system becomes even more powerful.

That is how data works. A single piece of information may seem harmless. Connect enough pieces, and they can tell a much larger story.

Technology also does not remain frozen in place. Systems receive updates. New tools are added. Artificial intelligence improves. Information collected for one purpose can later be analyzed in ways that were never discussed when the system was approved.

I have felt for much of my life that the United States has been crawling toward becoming a surveillance state. I have also believed we could slow that movement through careful votes and policies that protect individual liberty.

The mass adoption of Flock cameras feels like a massive leap in the other direction.

I support law enforcement and technology. But supporting either one does not mean we should stop asking questions, especially when a system collects information about people who are not suspected of doing anything wrong.

I hope Cookeville’s leaders will continue listening to the residents who raised concerns Thursday night. More importantly, I hope they will remember that once we build this kind of system, getting back the privacy we surrendered may not be easy.

Cameron Williams is chief technology and production operations officer for Reaves & Williams Publishing Group. In “Behind the Screen,” he explores technology, data and digital media.