ALPRs are recording your daily drive (feat. Will Freeman)
From Lock and Code by Malwarebytes
December 28, 2025 · 36 min · Season 6 · Episode 26
About this episode
The episode discusses the implications of Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs) and their impact on privacy and data security.
There’s an entire surveillance network popping up across the United States that has likely already captured your information, all for the non-suspicion of driving a car. Automated License Plate Readers, or ALPRs, are AI-powered cameras that scan and store an image of every single vehicle that passes their view. They are mounted onto street lights, installed under bridges, disguised in water barrels, and affixed onto telephone poles, lampposts, parking signs, and even cop cars. Once installed, these cameras capture a vehicle’s license plate number, along with its make, model, and color, and any identifying features, like a bumper sticker, or damage, or even sport trim options. Because nearly every ALPR camera has an associated location, these devices can reveal where a car was headed, and at what time, and by linking data from multiple ALPRs, it’s easy to determine a car’s daylong route and, by proxy, it’s owner’s daily routine. This deeply sensitive information has been exposed in recent history. In 2024, the US Cybersecurity and Information Security Agency discovered seven vulnerabilities in cameras made by Motorola Solutions , and at the start of 2025, the outlet …
People in this episode
Host: Malwarebytes
Guest: Will Freeman
Topics covered
- surveillance
- ALPR
- data security
- law enforcement
- privacy
- technology
Keywords
- ALPR
- license plate readers
- surveillance network
- data privacy
- law enforcement
- Motorola Solutions
- Wired
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Malwarebytes, Motorola Solutions, Wired
Places: United States
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