Does Winthrop University have Flock Cameras?
The Winthrop University Police Department (WUPD) began using the Flock Safety camera system in 2022 under a multi-year agreement with Flock Safety. The annual cost of the contract is $10,000, which is included as a line-item expenditure within the WUPD's budget. The terms and conditions associated with the contract are available here. Winthrop University currently has a total of (5) Flock Safety cameras, which are located at various entry points to the Winthrop University campus. In an effort to share transparency with the public, usage statistics are available here.
How does WUPD use the camera system?
WUPD policy dictates that no employee shall use or authorize the use of the system for any purpose other than legitimate law enforcement reasons. Misuse of this tool will result in disciplinary action up to and including termination.
“Alert”- An alert simply indicates that the detected vehicle matches information contained in a hot list.
“Hotlist”- A hotlist is a list of license plates or vehicle descriptions that law enforcement has identified as being associated with a crime, missing person, wanted person, stolen vehicle, or other legitimate law enforcement investigation.
“Search”- A search in Flock Safety is the act of an authorized user querying the system to locate vehicle detections that match specific criteria.
What notification does the Department receive regarding an alert?
The below image is an alert that was generated when a vehicle driving on the campus of Winthrop University was identified by the Flock Safety License Plate Reader (LPR) system as a possible stolen vehicle. The vehicle had been entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) database by a law enforcement agency in South Carolina as stolen. The license plate number has been redacted from this document for investigative and privacy purposes.
What information is submitted for a Hotlist entry?
The below image depicts the Hot List entry form utilized within the Flock Safety system. WUPD requires officers to document a valid law enforcement purpose before a vehicle can be added to a Hotlist. Officers are required to enter either a Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) number or an incident report number associated with the investigation and document or enforcement action. Only vehicle related information, such as the license plate number, issuing state, and vehicle characteristics, is entered into the system. All Hotlist entries are subject to review and oversight to ensure compliance with WUPD policy.
What information is submitted for a search?
The below screenshot depicts the search request process utilized by officers within the Flock Safety system. Prior to conducting a search, WUPD officers are required to enter a valid case number and document the specific law enforcement purpose or reason for the search. The Flock Safety system will not permit a search request to be submitted without this information.
Searches are conducted only for legitimate law enforcement purposes and are subject to audit and review. Additionally, only vehicle related information is entered into and searched within the Flock Safety system. This information may include the vehicle's license plate number, issuing state, vehicle make, model, color, and other observable vehicle characteristics. The Flock Safety platform does not contain personal identifying information about vehicle owners or occupants. The search is limited to vehicle associated data, such as license plate information, vehicle characteristics, and images of the vehicle captured by the system.
What data does the camera capture?
The below image illustrates the information and imagery captured by a Flock Safety camera. The system provides a photograph of the vehicle, a close-up image of the license plate, the date and time of capture, camera location and vehicle characteristics such as make, color, body style, and state of registration when available.
In this example, the vehicle depicted is a WUPD vehicle that is assigned to the Patrol Division. The image demonstrates the type of vehicle-related information collected by the system and the level of detail available to authorized users. The information displayed is limited to observable vehicle data and does not include personal identifying information regarding the vehicle's owner, operator, or occupants.
How long is the data retained?
Collected data is retained on a rolling basis of 30 days. After the 30 day period, the collected data is then automatically deleted from the Flock Safety system.
Who owns the data that is collected?
All images, along with the associated date, time, and camera location information captured by Flock Safety cameras within the campus of Winthrop University, are the property of WUPD.
Who has access to the data?
Access to the Flock Safety system is restricted to authorized WUPD personnel who are assigned secure, individual login credentials. Each user's activity is audited, providing accountability for all Flock Safety system access and searches. Authorized WUPD personnel includes only those individuals with a documented and justifiable criminal justice function as part of their duties.
Is this data shared with anyone?
WUPD has elected to restrict access to all images, along with the associated date, time, and camera location information captured by Flock Safety cameras to law enforcement agencies within the State of South Carolina and those states that share a border with South Carolina. This data is not shared with any other law enforcement agencies, including federal law enforcement agencies. The public does not have access to the Flock Safety system or its data.
Is personal identifying information collected?
No! The Flock Safety system does not collect ANY personal identifying information. To obtain vehicle owner information, an officer must still use the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles database or other appropriate state entity database that provides motor vehicle registration information.
Is my movement being tracked?
No! Because the Flock Safety cameras are located only at certain entry points of campus, Winthrop University cannot track or determine where a vehicle travels within the campus. The Flock Safety system only captures a vehicle's passage at the designated Flock Safety camera locations.
Are the cameras capable of facial recognition or gathering data remotely?
No! The Flock Safety cameras capture the image of a vehicle license plate only and do not capture images or collect data on any occupants of the vehicle.
Where is the data stored?
All images, along with the associated date, time, and camera location information captured by Flock Safety cameras, are securely transmitted from the cameras to a cloud-based storage environment. Data is encrypted throughout its entire lifecycle, transmitted using Transport Layer Security (TLS) 1.2 or higher, and stored using AES-256 encryption standards to protect against unauthorized access.
What safeguards has WUPD put in place to ensure the system is used for law enforcement reasons?
WUPD policy has been updated to reflect best practices, and each officer with access to the Flock Safety system was trained on it to ensure they understand the policy and the expectations for the use of this law enforcement tool. Additionally, officers who have search capabilities in the Flock Safety system undergo supplemental training and policy review.
To ensure proper oversight and accountability, the Department's Internal Affairs oversees WUPD's Flock Safety program. As part of that responsibility, Internal Affairs conducts weekly reviews of the audit-assistance tools provided by Flock Safety to assess system usage and ensure compliance with Department policy. Internal Affairs also performs monthly audits of all Flock Safety system searches to verify that each query was conducted for a legitimate law enforcement purpose and is supported by an associated case report, CAD number, or other official investigative documentation.
In addition, Internal Affairs conducts a monthly review of all entries placed in the Department's "Hot List" within the Flock Safety system. The Hot List consists of license plates or vehicle descriptions associated with crimes, missing persons, wanted individuals, stolen vehicles, or other active law enforcement investigations. These reviews help ensure that entries remain connected to legitimate and ongoing investigations and that all information maintained within the Flock Safety system is accurate, current, and maintained solely for legitimate law enforcement purposes. Each "Hot List" entry shall be supported by a corresponding Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) event number or incident report number documenting the law enforcement purpose for the entry. Any entry that does not contain the required CAD event number or incident report number, or that is no longer authorized or necessary for a legitimate law enforcement purpose, shall be promptly removed from the Hot List.
WUPD policy mandates that upon receiving an "alert" indicating that the detected vehicle matches information contained in a hot list, the officer shall visually verify that the vehicle plate number matches the plate number captured by the Flock Safety system, including both alphanumeric characters of the license plate and the state of issuance. The officer must also verify the current status of the information provided by the hit through dispatch or their in-car computer. Receipt of a hit is not sufficient reasonable suspicion to initiate a stop without verification. Verification of information is essential before conducting the traffic stop, furthering the investigation, or taking any enforcement action. If the officer verifies that the alert or hit is accurate, the officer shall take appropriate enforcement or investigative action consistent with department policies and procedures, applicable state and local laws, and the United States Constitution.
