In October 2025, Elgin Community College in Illinois found itself in a tech tussle with Flock, a company known for its surveillance cameras. The college had installed six Flock safety cameras to enhance student safety, but by September, administration concerns over data sharing and security breaches led to a demand for removal.

When Elgin Community College formally requested Flock to remove the cameras in October, the company refused, citing non-violation of their contract. Even when the school offered to pay for the remaining five months, they were met with silence. Enter the drama: the college staff resorted to covering the cameras with black trash bags and zip ties, only for the same unmarked vehicle to remove the covers. It was a game of cat and mouse, with Heinrich, the college’s president, saying, “We were kind of in a back and forth for a bit where we’d cover, and then when they’d come to service, they’d remove.”

The saga continued until April 2026 when the college’s contract expired, and Flock, finally, removed the cameras. Yet, the incident raises unsettling questions about corporate influence and the rights of institutions in the age of pervasive surveillance.

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