Cambridge city councillors are urgently reviewing their recent approval of a Flock Safety automatic license plate reader (ALPR) system amid growing alarm over data privacy. Initially approved for local law enforcement purposes, such as finding stolen cars, the federally-funded cameras feed data into a national network. This raises concerns that information on Cambridge residents could be accessed by federal agencies like ICE or by police in other states for purposes such as prosecuting abortion seekers. Civil liberties advocates and residents testified that vendor promises about data security are unreliable and that the system enables broader surveillance, including AI-based “pre-crime” detection. While no final decision has been made, the city manager acknowledged the rapidly changing landscape of federal data use and agreed to re-evaluate the policy before the cameras are installed, reflecting a significant shift from the council’s initial 6-3 approval.