What you are about to know is a sensitive investigative matter.
The company under question is Flock Safety, taking charge of a nationwide network of automatic license plate readers.
“Flock brings together detection, investigation, and response into a singular platform, so incidents move from capture to clear, searchable evidence quickly,” goes the official statement from Flock Safety.
According to ridesharing media, this company pitched a plan to turn hundreds of thousands, particularly around 350,000 cars and drivers of Uber and Lyft into a mobile extension of its surveillance system.
So, it’s like tapping into the Internet connection of your neighbor without their consent! Or, wire-tapping! Scary.
Joseph Cox of 404 Media revealed a document describing equipping the cars with dashcams capable of scanning license plates along their routes, in order to expand the network of Flock Safety without them investing time and resources in this.
What’s worse, this is part of the company’s partnership with dashcam maker Nexar, whose apparatuses are already marketed to ridesharing drivers and passengers. 404 Media is firm about the document proving the company doing this. It was shared by a resident in Georgia who acquired it through public records request, after Flock Safety presented it to its attorney-general’s office.
404 Media found that this Nexas deal was “never actually put into place,” but like a villainous company in DC Comics, it planned to draw on roughly 350,000 Uber, Lyft, and other delivery gadgets for the network.
It is unclear whether Uber, Lyft, or their drivers are aware of this data collection.
Flock Safety and Nexar have both been involved previously in security breach incidents.
Uber, Lyft, and Nexar – the parties caught in the middle of this tangle – have not yet released their statements on this, as of press time. Ridesharing media will keep following this. In the meantime, keep browsing this website, Ridesharingforum.com for the newest updates on ridesharing, coupons, food deliveries, business, lifestyle, and so much more!