AI surveillance in Hawaii prompts ‘Big Brother’ concerns

9 hours ago
3 min read

Watch AI surveillance in Hawaii prompts ‘Big Brother’ concerns on KHON2

I was recently interviewed by KHON2 about the AI-based street surveillance being done across the islands by companies such as Flock security. As a private company, all the data they gather about you and your whereabouts can be sold to anyone - private retailers such as Walmart and Home Depot as well as state and Federal agencies such as the HPD and ICE.

They're known as Automated License Plate Readers or ALPR for short. These cameras scan plates on passing vehicles, compare them against police databases and can help locate stolen cars, vehicles connected to crimes and wanted or missing people.

The concern is that the system doesn’t only record suspicious vehicles. It also captures the plate, location and potentially an image of ordinary drivers who aren’t connected to any crime. HPD says the data is normally deleted after 90 days, but it can be kept longer as evidence and may be shared with other law-enforcement agencies with approval. That creates understandable questions about how easily someone’s movements could be searched, combined or misused.

If you're interested in a more in-depth breakdown of ALPR's and the data they capture, Benn Jordan has one of the best videos I've seen on YouTube about this topic. You can watch it here.

The Takeaway

Unfortunately there isn’t much you can do to prevent a legally displayed plate from being photographed on a public road. It is illegal to block the visibility of your license plate in any way (yes, I double-checked).

However, you can reduce the other information that might be combined with this data by turning off unnecessary phone location history and reviewing which apps have constant location access. You might be surprised to find out how many apps on your phone have access to your location, potentially gathering that data and selling it to advertisers. Here's how:

On iPhone

* Open Settings.

* Tap Privacy & Security.

* Tap Location Services.

Now scroll through the list, select an app and review its location setting:

* Never (the app can't access your location)

* Ask Next Time or When I Share (the app must ask again)

* While Using the App (location is available only while you're actively using it)

* Always (the app may access your location in the background)

Change Always to While Using the App or Never unless the app genuinely needs background access.

Turn off Precise Location when an app only needs your general area, such as a weather or shopping app.

Pay particular attention to social media, shopping, games, news, restaurant and advertising-related apps. Navigation, emergency, family-location and device-recovery apps may have a legitimate reason for background access.

On Android

* Open Settings.

* Tap Location.

* Tap App location permissions.

Look under Allowed all the time to see which apps have constant background access. Select an app.

Change its permission to:

* Allow only while using the app

* Ask every time

* Don't allow

* Turn off Use precise location when the app doesn't need your exact position.

Android menus can vary by manufacturer. Another route is:

Settings → Apps → select the app → Permissions → Location

Google recommends reviewing the apps listed under Allowed all the time, Allowed only while in use, and Not allowed from the App Location Permissions screen.