After Abbott’s order limiting Flock cameras, DPS to continue using its vast surveillance network

Abbott's order targeted local law enforcement use of Flock cameras, but DPS operates its own vast network separately. Law enforcement agencies from across the country search the DPS Flock database once every four seconds, on average. That is not a typo.

After the Tribune reached out with questions, DPS said it will limit which outside agencies can access the network. That concession came only after a reporter asked, not before. The database pulls in license plate reader data and allows agencies well beyond Texas borders to run searches against it, raising questions about how much oversight has existed over who gets in and what they can pull.

For people here in Lubbock, this matters. Local law enforcement agencies regularly use Flock and similar plate-reader systems, and if Lubbock PD is connected to the DPS network, your vehicle's movements could be searchable by a department in another state without you ever knowing it.

Abbott's order drew attention to local Flock use, but the state's own system was already operating at a scale that dwarfs anything a single city runs.