Birmingham residents curious whether their license plate has been searched through Flock’s system can check available audit logs for free at haveibeenflocked.com.
The website, reported Aug. 20 by FOX 2 Detroit, pulls from audit logs obtained through public records requests and Flock Transparency Portals. Users type in a plate number and instantly see whether anyone on the Flock system searched for that plate. The most recent data available is from July 31.
A result does not mean the driver is suspected of a crime. It means someone with access to Flock's database manually searched that plate number. The searcher is not necessarily a police officer, and many agencies do not require a warrant or suspicion to run a plate.
When a result appears, it shows the searching person's first initial and partial last name, a 30-day search window, the number of devices searched, the filter or state network used and a reason. That reason almost always reads "investigative." As of December 2025, Flock no longer requires agencies to enter a specific reason for each search.
The site says it does not store or log the plate numbers users enter. The search is performed and the data is immediately discarded.
How Flock cameras work
Flock cameras photograph every passing vehicle. Artificial intelligence extracts the plate number, state, vehicle make, model, color and physical traits such as dents. When a vehicle description is reported to police, the system cross-checks it against the database and produces a "hit" for investigators.
According to the FOX 2 report, the cameras are not used for traffic enforcement, do not photograph vehicle occupants and do not use facial recognition.
Flock Safety reported operating more than 120,000 cameras across 49 states as of June 25, according to USA Today.
Local tension over cameras
Oakland County officials have confirmed Flock cameras have been vandalized in Birmingham, Novi, Pontiac, Waterford and West Bloomfield. Cameras have been shot, spray-painted and cut down. In Waterford, several cameras were ripped from their mounts and smashed in February, leading to felony charges against a Clarkston man.
Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard, speaking in an Aug. 12 FOX 2 report on camera vandalism, credited a Flock camera hit with helping police locate and arrest an armed carjacking suspect in May.
Not every community has kept the cameras. Westland ended its Flock agreement, with cameras coming down in August. Ferndale severed its contract in late 2025 after residents raised concerns about how data is used and accessed.
What to know before searching
The haveibeenflocked.com dataset is incomplete. It covers only agencies whose audit logs have been obtained through public records requests or transparency portals. Whether Birmingham Police Department operates a Flock Transparency Portal is not confirmed in public reporting.
Residents who want to report a concern to Birmingham police can reach dispatch at (248) 644-3405.
