Trump backs Flock license plate cameras — but new survey reveals 47% of US public oppose them as 3 police officers are arrested for alleged 'misuse' of the tech

(Image credit: Getty Images) US President Donald Trump says he supports Flock’s license plate cameras Most Americans oppose the installation of the devices, a survey suggestsSeveral police officers have been arrested after abusing Flock techFlock’s automated license plate recognition (ALPR) cameras are continuing to hit the headlines, with the latest controversy being a series of arrests of police officers who were found to be misusing the tech for nefarious purposes. Yet some supportive comments from US President Donald Trump about Flock's cameras and a major new survey show the tech continues to be divisive, rather than unanimously rejected.After an investigation by USA Today, at least three police officers have been arrested and a fourth was fired after the news outlet “alleged widespread Flock misuse,” which included repeatedly searching for and tracking individual vehicles that were not involved in any criminal activity.However, it hasn't all been bad news for Flock this week. One significant supporter of the tech appears to be US President Donald Trump — when asked for his opinion on Flock aboard Air Force One, Trump responded that “I sort of like them because of that, because of law enforcement,” while adding that some people “think it’s an infringement.”When a reporter suggested that Flock cameras “help catch a lot of criminals,” Trump said “I like them". A new survey, conducted for conducted for Reuters by the global market research and consultant firm Ipsos, also shows that while Flock cameras are broadly unpopular among the American public, there are some differences based on political persuasions.Strong opposition to Flock (Image credit: Getty Images)The Reuters survey polled 1,167 adults across the US and found that 47% of those questioned were opposed to the use of Flock cameras in their communities, while 38% were in favor. The remaining 16% said they were unsure.The majority of Democrats and independents were against the cameras, as were almost all age groups, both male and female respondents, and both those with and without a college degree. However, Republicans and people aged 55 or above came out in favor of the use of Flock.As for the police officer investigations, USA Today said they've led to at least 22 police officers being “arrested, fired, put on leave or placed under investigation” after they were found to have abused their access to Flock technology.Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more.As a result of one officer in Columbus, Ohio being fired for searching for a single license plate 272 times without adequate reason, Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther said that the city will pause its use of Flock cameras “Until I can report out to the people of Columbus that this isn’t a more widespread issue, that this really is just one person or a few people misusing and abusing this technology.” Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Alex Blake has been fooling around with computers since the early 1990s, and since that time he's learned a thing or two about tech. No more than two things, though. That's all his brain can hold. As well as TechRadar, Alex writes for iMore, Digital Trends and Creative Bloq, among others. He was previously commissioning editor at MacFormat magazine. That means he mostly covers the world of Apple and its latest products, but also Windows, computer peripherals, mobile apps, and much more beyond. When not writing, you can find him hiking the English countryside and gaming on his PC.