Proton map shows more than 214,000 Flock cameras worldwide

Privacy-focused company Proton has published a map showing the locations of Flock automated license plate reader (ALPR) cameras. Viewed across the globe, the map displays 214,073 cameras in active use. Of those, 213,712 are in the United States and Canada.

The map draws on data collected by security researcher Joshua Michael, who found that Flock was exposing camera locations through its servers. Michael’s dataset is a snapshot from December 2025. He says it will not be updated, so cameras installed or decommissioned after that date are not reflected. The article reports that Michael’s research website and Proton’s map remained available at the time of publication, despite Flock’s attempt to have the research site taken down.

Users can search by ZIP code, filter devices by service status, US state, and capabilities, and view a selected camera’s coordinates and the date it entered the dataset. Proton said people have a right to know who is recording them and described the map as a way to make informed decisions and contact municipal leaders.

The article also compares the map with DeFlock, a crowdsourced project covering Flock and other companies’ cameras, including Genetec and Motorola. DeFlock lists 144,457 devices in the US and 950 in Canada, and has more Canadian data than Michael’s dataset. The two projects use different data and coverage, so their totals are not directly comparable.