4 ms·

> This is about a database of collected data on you that can be searched by anyone. ANYONE. Except this part isn't true?

Noaidi 10mo ago
Anyone, by that I mean anyone that matters, or a very large group of people that you should be afraid of to have this power. I mean, excuse my hyperbole, but is this not enough? Like an ex boyfriend: https://www.kansas.com/news/politics-government/article291059560.html https://www.kansas.com/news/politics-government/article29105... Or the Feds: https://centralcurrent.org/federal-immigration-agents-accessed-syracuse-drivers-data-through-secret-flock-safety-deal/ https://centralcurrent.org/federal-immigration-agents-access... Or a cop anywhere: https://data.aclum.org/2025/10/07/flock-gives-law-enforcement-all-over-the-country-access-to-your-location/ https://data.aclum.org/2025/10/07/flock-gives-law-enforcemen... https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/11/how-cops-are-using-flock-safetys-alpr-network-surveil-protesters-and-activists https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/11/how-cops-are-using-flo... https://atlpresscollective.com/2025/11/13/atlanta-police-flock-immigration-searches/ https://atlpresscollective.com/2025/11/13/atlanta-police-flo...
- try_the_bass 10mo ago
  Seems like you're more moving the goalposts away from your original, inaccurate, and highly sensational claim? Maybe don't make the blatantly false claim in the first place?
gunalx 10mo ago
It was at least, because of shitty security practices.
sallveburrpi 10mo ago
I think he didn’t mean that say “everyone” but rather “anyone who is some random person working for this private company or the cops or the government or whoever they inevitably sell this data to/gets access to the data when it inevitably leaks through some random unsecured s3 bucket”
- try_the_bass 10mo ago
  If that's not what he meant, then maybe he shouldn't have said "anyone" twice? With the caps for emphasis, even.
rationalist 10mo ago
The data is available by FOIA.
- try_the_bass 10mo ago
  Is it? I thought only searches of the database were available that way? Like, the history of queries, not the raw data. I don't think FOIA requests can be used to run your own searches of these databases.
  - rationalist 10mo ago
    Submit a FOIA for a specific area and time, and you can get all of the raw data for that, then you can do your own searches. You generally cannot submit a FOIA for all of the data.
    - try_the_bass 10mo ago
      I don't think this is true. Do you have some sources for this?
      - reaperducer 10mo ago
        Journalists do this all the time. We used to get big 9-track reels of data where I worked.
        try_the_bass 10mo ago
        The reason I'm skeptical of this, in this particular case, is because the data here isn't actually owned by the police/government (I think?), it's owned by Flock. A department can search the data for given attributes, but I don't think they have the whole data set to provide as a response to a FOIA request in the first place.
        thunderfork 10mo ago

Noaidi 10mo ago

Anyone, by that I mean anyone that matters, or a very large group of people that you should be afraid of to have this power. I mean, excuse my hyperbole, but is this not enough? Like an ex boyfriend: https://www.kansas.com/news/politics-government/article291059560.html https://www.kansas.com/news/politics-government/article29105... Or the Feds: https://centralcurrent.org/federal-immigration-agents-accessed-syracuse-drivers-data-through-secret-flock-safety-deal/ https://centralcurrent.org/federal-immigration-agents-access... Or a cop anywhere: https://data.aclum.org/2025/10/07/flock-gives-law-enforcement-all-over-the-country-access-to-your-location/ https://data.aclum.org/2025/10/07/flock-gives-law-enforcemen... https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/11/how-cops-are-using-flock-safetys-alpr-network-surveil-protesters-and-activists https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/11/how-cops-are-using-flo... https://atlpresscollective.com/2025/11/13/atlanta-police-flock-immigration-searches/ https://atlpresscollective.com/2025/11/13/atlanta-police-flo...

try_the_bass 10mo ago
Seems like you're more moving the goalposts away from your original, inaccurate, and highly sensational claim? Maybe don't make the blatantly false claim in the first place?

gunalx 10mo ago

It was at least, because of shitty security practices.

sallveburrpi 10mo ago

I think he didn’t mean that say “everyone” but rather “anyone who is some random person working for this private company or the cops or the government or whoever they inevitably sell this data to/gets access to the data when it inevitably leaks through some random unsecured s3 bucket”

try_the_bass 10mo ago
If that's not what he meant, then maybe he shouldn't have said "anyone" twice? With the caps for emphasis, even.

rationalist 10mo ago

The data is available by FOIA.

try_the_bass 10mo ago
Is it? I thought only searches of the database were available that way? Like, the history of queries, not the raw data. I don't think FOIA requests can be used to run your own searches of these databases.
- rationalist 10mo ago
  Submit a FOIA for a specific area and time, and you can get all of the raw data for that, then you can do your own searches. You generally cannot submit a FOIA for all of the data.
  - try_the_bass 10mo ago
    I don't think this is true. Do you have some sources for this?
    - reaperducer 10mo ago
      Journalists do this all the time. We used to get big 9-track reels of data where I worked.
      - try_the_bass 10mo ago
        The reason I'm skeptical of this, in this particular case, is because the data here isn't actually owned by the police/government (I think?), it's owned by Flock. A department can search the data for given attributes, but I don't think they have the whole data set to provide as a response to a FOIA request in the first place.
        thunderfork 10mo ago