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Plate readers © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) · © OpenMapTiles
Palo Alto has 41 mapped plate readers. 39 carry the Flock Safety tag. Most don't say who runs them.
They were first mapped between Jul 20, 2024 and Sep 12, 2026. A plate reader keeps a record of each car that passes. Whoever runs it sets how long and who can search it.
Flock cameras in Palo Alto: locations by ZIP code
ZIP 94301 has the most (22), then 94306 (14) and 94303 (3). Mounted on, where known: 7 on poles and 1 on a street light.
| Where | Maker tag and operator | Facing | First mapped |
|---|---|---|---|
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces southwest (as mapped) | Jul 20, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces northwest (as mapped) | Dec 28, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces west-northwest (as mapped) | Dec 28, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces northwest (as mapped) | Dec 28, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces north (as mapped) | Dec 28, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces east (as mapped) | Dec 28, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces north-northeast (as mapped) | Dec 28, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces south-southwest (as mapped) | Dec 28, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces west (as mapped) | Dec 28, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces north-northwest (as mapped) | Dec 28, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces east-northeast (as mapped) | Dec 28, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces east-southeast (as mapped) | Dec 28, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces south-southeast (as mapped) | Dec 28, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces east-southeast (as mapped) | Dec 28, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces east-southeast (as mapped) | Dec 28, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces south-southwest (as mapped) | Dec 28, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces east-northeast (as mapped) | Jun 10, 2025 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces north-northeast (as mapped) | Jul 26, 2025 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces east (as mapped) | Oct 7, 2025 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Palo Alto Police Department | Faces east-southeast (as mapped) | Oct 17, 2025 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces east (as mapped) | Feb 19, 2026 |
| Near ZIP 94301 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Direction not mapped | Apr 28, 2026 |
| Near ZIP 94303 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Palo Alto Police Department | Faces northwest (as mapped) | Nov 21, 2025 |
| Near ZIP 94303 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Palo Alto Police Department | Faces southwest (as mapped) | Dec 16, 2025 |
| Near ZIP 94303 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Palo Alto Police Department | Faces south-southwest (as mapped) | Mar 1, 2026 |
| Near ZIP 94306 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces south-southwest (as mapped) | Nov 12, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94306 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces south (as mapped) | Nov 12, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94306 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Palo Alto Police Department | Faces west-southwest (as mapped) | Nov 29, 2024 |
| Near ZIP 94306 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces west (as mapped) | Jun 10, 2025 |
| Near ZIP 94306 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces north-northeast (as mapped) | Jun 10, 2025 |
| Near ZIP 94306 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Palo Alto Police Department | Faces east (as mapped) | Jun 21, 2025 |
| Near ZIP 94306 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Palo Alto Police Department | Faces south (as mapped) | Jun 21, 2025 |
| Near ZIP 94306 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces north-northeast (as mapped) | Jul 8, 2025 |
| Near ZIP 94306 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces northwest (as mapped) | Sep 9, 2025 |
| Near ZIP 94306 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Palo Alto Police Department | Faces west-northwest (as mapped) | Oct 7, 2025 |
| Near ZIP 94306 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Palo Alto Police Department | Faces north-northeast (as mapped) | Oct 7, 2025 |
| Near ZIP 94306 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Palo Alto Police Department | Faces west-northwest (as mapped) | Oct 7, 2025 |
| Near ZIP 94306 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces northwest (as mapped) | Aug 3, 2026 |
| Near ZIP 94306 Show on map | Flock Safety Run by: Not listed yet | Faces east (as mapped) | Sep 12, 2026 |
Near you: Flock camera locations near me.
Who runs the Flock cameras in Palo Alto
Most don't say who runs them.
- Palo Alto Police Department 10
What the Flock cameras in Palo Alto keep
- Records
- The plate of each car that passes, with the time and place. Often a photo of the car.
- Run by
- 10 of 39 say who runs them, most often Palo Alto Police Department (10).
- Kept for
- Not published on the map. Each operator sets its own. Flock Safety’s FAQ: “Flock recommends a 7-day default.”
- Who sees it
- Whoever runs it, and those it shares with. In California, a public agency may share only with other public agencies in the state.
- How to ask
- Read the operator's policy. California requires one. Or ask the city for its records.
Who can search plate reads in Palo Alto
67 agencies can search reads from the Palo Alto Police Department’s plate readers, by its posted sharing list (Oct 14, 2026). Its portal says it keeps each read for 30 days.
Palo Alto Police Department
- Agencies on its posted sharing list
- 67
- Other organizations on its list
- 1
- Keeps each read for
- 30 days
- Plate readers its portal lists
- 30
- Agencies whose reads it can search
- 103
Its transparency portal, as of Oct 13, 2026 · See its sharing lists, as of Oct 14, 2026
Get one summary email a month on new plate readers in Palo Alto
Portal figures and sharing lists: EyesOnFlock (CC BY-SA 4.0), from Flock Safety transparency portals.
When the Flock cameras in Palo Alto were first mapped
Flock-tagged readers here were first mapped from July 20, 2024 to September 12, 2026. 19 of the 39 were first mapped in 2024, with 15 in December alone.
CamsAhead started its daily change log on October 22, 2026. How the map changed.
Flock cameras near Palo Alto
Flock cameras in Palo Alto: questions
How many Flock cameras are in Palo Alto?
39 plate readers tagged Flock Safety are on the map in Palo Alto, CA, as of November 7, 2026.
Where are the Flock cameras in Palo Alto?
The table lists the most recently mapped ones by ZIP code, and the map shows all of them. ZIP 94301 has the most (22).
Who runs the plate readers in Palo Alto?
Most don't say who runs them. Whoever runs each one sets how long it keeps the reads and who can search them, within California law.
Which agencies around Palo Alto use plate readers?
The EFF's Atlas of Surveillance lists Palo Alto Police Department as an agency that uses plate readers.
Which way does each camera face?
38 of the 39 carry a direction tag, and the map draws each of those as a cone.
Know when cameras in Palo Alto change.
Free email alerts for new plate readers mapped near your places. One summary email a month.
- When a plate reader is first mapped near you
- New cameras mapped or reported near you
- What plate readers keep, and who runs them
- Your street, your distance, the camera types you pick
156,883 cameras listed or mapped so far.
Sources and updates
How this page was made: CamsAhead writes each page type once, then fills it with this place's data from the sources below.
- OpenStreetMap contributors: plate readers in Palo Alto, CA, data as of Nov 7, 2026; ODbL 1.0
- Flock Safety FAQ: the default retention quoted in What they keep, read Oct 24, 2026
- California Civil Code §1798.90.51: the use and privacy policy rule for plate readers
- California Civil Code §1798.90.55: the rule on who a public agency may share reads with
- EFF Atlas of Surveillance: agencies that use plate readers, data as of Aug 2026; CC BY 4.0
Plate reader points are mapped by OpenStreetMap volunteers (data as of November 7, 2026).
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