This free tool is helping drivers avoid automatic license plate readers as fears grow around 'intrusive' new devices that could track your phone, AirPod and smartwatch data

Date:
Mon, 22 Jun 2026 17:59:21 +0000

Description:
Automatic license plate readers are getting worryingly smart, so drivers and privacy advocates are fighting back with a free tool called DeFlock.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter ALPR (Automated License Plate Recognition) camera tech is getting smarter A new company is bridging the gap between cameras and connected tech Tools to avoid ALPR cameras are rapidly gaining popularity More than 5,000 law enforcement departments across the US use Flock Safety cameras to track billions of license plates every month, according to a report from NBC news , helping them build an enormous database of the movements of everyday people.

But Flock is just one company working on such tech, with hundreds of new automatic license plate reader (ALPR) cameras and devices springing up daily. More recently, 404Media has highlighted a new tech firm that aims to add phone, AirPod and Smartwatch location data to license plate readers in order to build a clearer picture about who was driving what and when. Understandably, rebellious drivers are now fighting back thanks to a new website called DeFlock. Latest Videos From Watch full video here:

Leonardo's SignalTrace system is designed to scan the airwaves for signals left by myriad Bluetooth and wireless connected devices in order to link
these to a license plate as it passes, potentially placing an individual in a vehicle at a specific time and place.

Leonardo says its technology uses "non-intrusive intelligence gathering" to detect publicly broadcasted device identifiers, feeding this data into an advanced algorithm so that multiple devices traveling together could link an individual to a vehicle and vice versa. You may like Met Police and Apple partner to reduce iPhone theft A spy in your pocket? How the UKs proposed on-device nude image blocking could work in reality Could AI-powered dash
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The police and other law enforcement agencies are then able to access this data, but concerns have been raised about the potential for hacking or misuse by the authorities to track personal relations. Analysis: Privacy advocates are pushing back (Image credit: Deflock.org) In a move that aims to hand back some control to the individual, a website called DeFlock has surfaced that allows anyone to plan routes that actively avoid Flocks ALPR cameras altogether and generally provide a more privacy-focussed alternative. Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

Just like most digital route-planners, users plug in a start and end point
for their journey, changing how aggressively they want the software to avoid cameras, according to Carscoops .

The site will then compare a normal route to the more private alternative, suggesting how many miles and minutes a detour would take.

Website user numbers are on the increase, as organizations, such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation , have warned that Flocks surveillance camera systems are designed to enable mass surveillance and are susceptible to grave abuses, according to its own investigations.

Last year, the EFF reported on how more than 50 federal, state, and local agencies ran hundreds of searches through Flock's national network of surveillance data in connection with protest activity over a ten-month
period, for example.

With news that ALPR cameras could soon be linked to connected devices, some sectors of the general public are understandably concerned, with one Reddit user commenting: the only hope for anything is a Digital Civil Rights movement. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds.



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/vehicle-tech/hybrid-electric-vehicles/this-free-tool -is-helping-drivers-avoid-automatic-license-plate-readers-as-fears-grow-around -intrusive-new-devices-that-could-track-your-phone-airpod-and-smartwatch-data


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