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Maximus Kwan @maximuskwan.com · 21/09/2026

honored to take first in Reporting & Writing: News Story at NSPA Clips & Clicks. accountability/investigative work isn't always easy, but it's the work that helps out the most. huge thanks to everyone who helped me get there, and onto the next! studentpress.org/nspa/spring-...

Reporting & Writing: News Story
[article text]
First Place
Security Cameras Can Recognize Faces
Maximus Kwan
Scot Scoop
Carlmont High School
Belmont, California

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Reposted by Maximus Kwan

Radley Balko @radleybalko.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Here's a gift link to my 9/11 essay in the NYT. Civil libertarians long warned that before giving government new powers, we should consider how an administration with authoritarian ambition might abuse them. We were told that America was too exceptional to elect such a person. Well here we are.

nytimes.com

Opinion | Civil Libertarians Knew This Would Happen. We Should Have Listened. (Gift Article)

The civil libertarians’ warnings have come true.

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Reposted by Maximus Kwan

Ursula K. Le Guin Bot @leguinbot.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

Despite what some adults seem to think, teenagers are fully human.

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Maximus Kwan @maximuskwan.com · 04/06/2026

my official response to the friends who ask me constantly when i'm finally going to cave and download Instagram the open web is great and i wouldn't have it any other way :) (inspired by a certain mastodon post: mastodon.online/@tomstafford...)

Star Wars meme from: https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/its-a-peaceful-life

Top panel: Imperial officer says "No Instagram? Really? A man of your talents?
Bottom panel: Man replies "It's a peaceful life."

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Maximus Kwan @maximuskwan.com · 03/06/2026

So we asked Santa Cruz City Councilmember Susie O'Hara about the NCRIC connection. She was one of the few elected officials anywhere who had scrutinized her city's Flock contract enough to eventually terminate it. If the NCRIC arrangement had ever been disclosed to a council, she would know

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Maximus Kwan @maximuskwan.com · 03/06/2026

In fact most agencies we identified in San Mateo County share data with a regional intelligence fusion center called the NCRIC. While local agencies typically delete their data after 30 days, the NCRIC can retain it for up to a year if there's an active investigation

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Maximus Kwan @maximuskwan.com · 03/06/2026

Every time your car passes one of these cameras, that detection gets uploaded to Flock's cloud. Depending on how agencies configure their sharing settings, it may not just be your local police department that can pull that data

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Maximus Kwan @maximuskwan.com · 03/06/2026

They're called Flock Safety cameras. Most people we spoke to had no idea they were there, including residents of cities that had already approved them

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Maximus Kwan @maximuskwan.com · 03/06/2026

NEW: There's a camera on a pole right outside my high school. It looks unremarkable but records every car that passes, logging the plate, make, model, color, and exact location. We spent months trying to find out how many more were in our county; the answer was 675 scotscoop.com/smile-youre-...

scotscoop.com

Smile, you’re on Flock

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Reposted by Maximus Kwan

Scots Media @scotscoop.bsky.social · 30/05/2026

Flock Safety, a private surveillance technology company, has installed automated license plate readers (ALPRs) across the country, which are used by police departments, school districts, and private communities.

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Maximus Kwan @maximuskwan.com · 03/03/2026

"When you expose young people to surveillance at a young age, you condition them to be used to surveillance and to give up their privacy." — Sophia Cope, senior staff attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation 6/6

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Maximus Kwan @maximuskwan.com · 03/03/2026

We also filed a California Public Records Act request with the Sequoia Union High School District for contracts, procurement records, and internal communications. First documents are due March 16. We'll report back. 5/

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Maximus Kwan @maximuskwan.com · 03/03/2026

There is no formal written policy governing footage retention, who can access it, or how it can be used in disciplinary matters. The AVP, when asked, said: "Not that I'm aware of." 4/

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Maximus Kwan @maximuskwan.com · 03/03/2026

The camera are Avigilon models made by Motorola Solutions. The documentation describes AI-powered appearance tracking and a facial recognition system that can match faces against watchlists and start alarms. The AVP confirmed the feature exists. He hasn't said whether the license was purchased. 3/

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Maximus Kwan @maximuskwan.com · 03/03/2026

I interviewed Carlmont's Administrative Vice Principal, a senior staff attorney at @eff.org, and six students across all four grade levels. None of the students knew about the facial recognition capabilities until I told them. 2/

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Maximus Kwan @maximuskwan.com · 03/03/2026

There's no escaping the cameras, whether you like it or not. Carlmont High School's surveillance cameras can recognize faces. Most students had no idea. There's no written policy, nor notification to families. And an expansion is coming with no public process. article for @scotscoop.bsky.social

scotscoop.com

Carlmont’s security cameras can recognize faces, but most students have no idea

A camera is mounted in a white dome above a hallway, the kind of thing a student walks beneath hundreds of times without ever looking up. It is one of approximately 20 to 30 security cameras positione...

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