FBI seeks US-wide access to license plate cameras, wants “data in near real time”

FBI 寻求全美范围的车牌摄像头访问权限，要求实现“近乎实时”的数据获取

The Federal Bureau of Investigation announced plans to buy nationwide access to a network of license plate readers, saying it will award contracts to one or more vendors that can offer “near real time” information from cameras across the US. The proposed contract is for the FBI Directorate of Intelligence. 美国联邦调查局（FBI）宣布计划购买全美范围的车牌识别网络访问权限，并表示将向能够提供来自全美摄像头“近乎实时”信息的供应商授予合同。该拟议合同旨在服务于 FBI 情报局。

“To evaluate and manage threats to personal safety, property, and law enforcement, the FBI requires professional service firms that can provide License Plate Readers (LPRs) for tracking subjects on roads and highways over the US and its territories,” the FBI said in a Request for Proposals (RFP) published on May 14. FBI 在 5 月 14 日发布的招标书（RFP）中表示：“为了评估和管理对人身安全、财产及执法工作的威胁，FBI 需要能够提供车牌识别系统（LPR）的专业服务公司，以便在美国及其领土的道路和高速公路上追踪目标。”

The FBI said the winning bidder or bidders “must provide law enforcement and/or commercial license plate reader data provided through the Contractor’s existing platform.” The system must cover 75 percent of locations, the FBI said. FBI 表示，中标者“必须通过承包商现有的平台提供执法部门和/或商业车牌识别数据”。FBI 要求该系统必须覆盖 75% 的目标区域。

The system must offer the ability to search for license plate information “and other descriptive data such as vehicle description information, time/date criteria, and geo-location criteria,” the FBI said. “Additionally, the system must provide search result notifications. The Contractor system must have the ability to access and/or query cameras across the United States and its territories. The Contractor system must be capable of providing this data in near real time.” FBI 指出，该系统必须具备搜索车牌信息以及“其他描述性数据（如车辆描述信息、时间/日期标准和地理位置标准）”的能力。“此外，系统必须提供搜索结果通知。承包商系统必须具备访问和/或查询美国及其领土内摄像头的能力。承包商系统必须能够近乎实时地提供这些数据。”

Contractors have to be able “to share/create maps depicting camera coverage (i.e. heat mapping),” and “provide the FBI the source of information (i.e. red-light cameras, repossession vendors, speed cameras, etc.),” the FBI said. The FBI said it needs to be able to search the database for partial or full plate numbers, plate states, addresses, locations where a plate was scanned, and vehicle makes and models. FBI 表示，承包商必须能够“共享/创建描绘摄像头覆盖范围的地图（即热力图）”，并“向 FBI 提供信息来源（如闯红灯摄像头、车辆收回商、测速摄像头等）”。FBI 表示，它需要能够通过数据库搜索部分或完整车牌号、车牌所属州、地址、车牌扫描地点以及车辆品牌和型号。

Flock and Motorola Solutions potential bidders

Flock 和摩托罗拉系统公司（Motorola Solutions）为潜在竞标者

The RFP divides the proposal into six regions covering the continental US, Hawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico, and territories such as Guam and the US Virgin Islands. The FBI said it may award contracts to one or two vendors in each region. The deals can be for up to five years, with all deals combined potentially worth $36 million. The FBI said a contractor’s system has to be available to FBI users via a website. 该招标书将提案分为六个区域，涵盖美国本土、夏威夷、阿拉斯加、波多黎各以及关岛和美属维尔京群岛等领地。FBI 表示，每个区域可能会授予一到两家供应商合同。合同期限最长可达五年，所有合同总价值可能高达 3600 万美元。FBI 要求承包商的系统必须通过网站向 FBI 用户开放。

Flock and Motorola Solutions are well-positioned to bid on the contract, as 404 Media noted yesterday. Both companies could win part of the job, as the FBI said it may award contracts to multiple vendors to achieve its desired level of access. Flock’s Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs) are sold to local police departments. The company boasts of having deals with “over 12,000 public safety customers including cities, towns, counties, and business partners.” Motorola Solutions sells license plate reader cameras that can be installed on busy roadways or mounted on police cars. 正如 404 Media 昨日指出的，Flock 和摩托罗拉系统公司在竞标该合同时处于有利地位。两家公司都有可能赢得部分业务，因为 FBI 表示可能会将合同授予多家供应商以实现其预期的访问水平。Flock 的自动车牌识别系统（ALPR）主要销往当地警察局。该公司声称与“超过 12,000 个公共安全客户（包括城市、城镇、县和商业合作伙伴）”达成了合作。摩托罗拉系统公司则销售可安装在繁忙道路上或警车上的车牌识别摄像头。

License plate reader cameras have raised concerns about privacy, data security, and errors in plate number recognition systems leading to wrongful arrests. 404 Media reported last year that local police departments performed searches of the Flock license plate reader system for US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), “giving federal law enforcement side-door access to a tool that it currently does not have a formal contract for.” 车牌识别摄像头引发了关于隐私、数据安全以及识别系统错误导致错误逮捕的担忧。404 Media 去年报道称，当地警察局曾为美国移民和海关执法局（ICE）搜索过 Flock 车牌识别系统，“这让联邦执法部门能够通过侧门访问其目前尚未正式签约的工具。”

The FBI already “runs a License Plate Reader program to facilitate LPR information sharing with and between its law enforcement partners,” a Congressional Research Service report says. The US agency “maintains a hot list of vehicle data against which law enforcement agencies can compare their LPR data.” The FBI intelligence division’s plan to obtain direct access to an extensive network of cameras could help expand that information sharing. As the FBI notes, its intelligence division shares information with a variety of federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies. 国会研究服务处的一份报告称，FBI 已经“运行了一个车牌识别项目，以促进与执法合作伙伴之间以及合作伙伴内部的 LPR 信息共享”。该机构“维护着一份车辆数据黑名单，执法机构可以将他们的 LPR 数据与该名单进行比对。”FBI 情报部门计划直接访问庞大的摄像头网络，这可能有助于扩大信息共享范围。正如 FBI 所指出的，其情报部门与各种联邦、州、地方和部落执法机构共享信息。

Flock: Sharing is “opt-in” for local police

Flock：共享对当地警察而言是“选择加入”模式

Flock itself temporarily provided access to Customs and Border Protection, Homeland Security Investigations, the Secret Service, and Naval Criminal Investigative Service as part of a pilot last year. Flock confirmed the pilot to the office of Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), according to Wyden. Flock says it has federal customers “including National Parks, Veterans Affairs hospitals, and military bases,” but that it does not work with ICE. 去年，作为试点项目的一部分，Flock 曾暂时向海关和边境保护局、国土安全调查局、特勤局和海军刑事调查局提供了访问权限。据参议员罗恩·怀登（Ron Wyden，俄勒冈州民主党人）办公室称，Flock 已向其确认了该试点项目。Flock 表示，其联邦客户“包括国家公园、退伍军人事务部医院和军事基地”，但它并不与 ICE 合作。

Federal attempts to access data could be limited by company policies. Flock says that communities using its cameras may grant data access to federal agencies, but that sharing with federal agencies is disabled by default. In March, Flock said it was “defining a new relationship with federal law enforcement,” including conditions to maintain local control over the sharing of data. “Flock data belongs to the agency that owns the cameras. There is no backdoor into Flock. Any access is explicitly permission-based and opt-in by the local agency,” the company said. 联邦政府获取数据的尝试可能会受到公司政策的限制。Flock 表示，使用其摄像头的社区可以授予联邦机构数据访问权限，但与联邦机构的共享默认是禁用的。今年 3 月，Flock 表示正在“定义与联邦执法部门的新关系”，包括维持地方对数据共享控制权的条件。该公司表示：“Flock 的数据属于拥有摄像头的机构。Flock 没有后门。任何访问都必须明确基于许可，并由当地机构选择加入。”

We contacted Flock and Motorola Solutions and will update this article if they provide any comment. There are also state laws limiting data access. California prohibits state and local agencies from sharing ALPR camera data with out-of-state or federal law执法 agencies. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) said in January 2024 that dozens of California law enforcement agencies violated the law by sharing ALPR information with out-of-state agencies. A Virginia law enacted last year imposed similar limits. The FBI’s request for proposals said contractors must identify the location of servers where data is stored to verify compliance with state and local laws on license plate reader data. 我们已联系 Flock 和摩托罗拉系统公司，如果他们提供任何评论，我们将更新本文。此外，还有一些州法律限制数据访问。加利福尼亚州禁止州和地方机构与州外或联邦执法机构共享 ALPR 摄像头数据。电子前沿基金会（EFF）在 2024 年 1 月表示，加州数十个执法机构因与州外机构共享 ALPR 信息而违反了法律。弗吉尼亚州去年颁布的一项法律也实施了类似的限制。FBI 的招标书要求承包商必须确定数据存储服务器的位置，以验证其是否符合关于车牌识别数据的州和地方法律。