From Straight Arrow · · 1m 20s
People building license plate reader cameras to track cops
A Canadian YouTuber built a camera to track police, sparking police visits and viral attention.
In brief
A Canadian YouTuber built a camera to track police, sparking police visits and viral attention. A Canadian YouTuber created a license plate reader camera to monitor police, leading to police visits and viral social media attention. Originally reported by Straight Arrow.
Canadian YouTuber builds police tracking camera
A Canadian YouTuber created a license plate reader camera designed to only track law enforcement vehicles.
Police visit after camera project goes viral
Police visited Ontario resident Anthony Sistilli’s home after he built the camera, claiming it could map police movements.
Sistilli’s camera uses cheap tech
Sistilli’s setup used a cheap Amazon camera, a laptop, and AI-generated software, far less advanced than police systems.
Video of police visit gets 815k views
A video Sistilli uploaded about the police visit has racked up more than 815,000 views on YouTube.
Others replicate Sistilli’s project
Discussions across social media suggest others are looking to replicate and improve Sistilli’s camera project in the U.S.
Flock cameras track police movements
Companies like Flock Safety use license plate reader cameras to track police movements, sparking bipartisan backlash.
Sistilli focuses on data centers next
Sistilli said he has not been contacted by police again and plans to focus on data centers next.
The big picture
A Canadian YouTuber created a license plate reader camera to monitor police, leading to police visits and viral social media attention.
