City of Akron restricting Flock camera access by outside law enforcement agencies

AKRON, Ohio (WOIO) - The City of Akron announced effective immediately, it is opting out of nationwide searches of its Flock camera network, preventing outside law enforcement agencies from accessing Akron’s cameras through broad searches conducted across Flock systems throughout the country.

The change is part of an ongoing review of the city’s Flock audit logs and concerns raised by residents and Akron City Council regarding privacy, immigration enforcement, and reproductive rights.

Chief of Public Safety Craig Morgan shared the update with Akron City Council’s Public Safety Committee on Monday.

“As we try to address as many concerns around flock as possible. We’ve opted the Akron Police Department out of the nationwide search. That’s effective today. So, no agencies, no local agencies outside of the state of Ohio will be able to search our network and of course, as I discussed last week, we have very limited federal partners,” said Morgan in the meeting.

The City’s review has found that the vast majority of identifiable searches conducted by outside agencies are part of blanket searches across available Flock networks nationwide, rather than targeted requests related to criminal activity in Akron. By opting out of nationwide searches, Akron will remove its camera network from these searches, preventing agencies in other states from accessing Akron’s data.

Resident Gina Burke said she supports the decision.

“I’m thrilled they made that decision. I think it’s a really good decision,” Burke said. “There needs to be restrictions. Let’s just put it that way.”

The change will not affect the Akron Police Department’s ability to use Flock for local public safety purposes. Agencies in Ohio will also still be able to search Akron’s system for statewide searches. Outside agencies with a legitimate investigative need and reason to believe a suspect is in Akron may still contact the Akron Police Department directly to request assistance.

In May, the city disabled search categories related to immigration enforcement and women’s reproductive health for outside agencies.

Burke said she supports the cameras for solving crime but not broad sharing.

“The concept is great, but the reality is that the information is being shared way too broadly. It needs to stay as local as possible,” Burke said.

“We recognize that residents have legitimate concerns about how this technology is used and who has access to the information it collects,” said Chief of Public Safety Craig Morgan. “We’re committed to addressing those concerns through careful review, meaningful safeguards, and transparency. That means being willing to make changes when the data shows us there’s a better way to protect the public.”