Privacy groups demand removal of covert license plate readers in California
Privacy and advocacy organizations called on California Governor Gavin Newsom to remove a network of covert license plate readers deployed across Southern California. The groups reported finding approximately 40 readers hidden in construction barrels in San Diego and Imperial counties, reportedly feeding data into a U.S. Border Patrol predictive intelligence program that monitors millions of American drivers' travel patterns.
What happened
More than two dozen privacy and advocacy organizations, including the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Imperial Valley Equity and Justice, sent a letter on Tuesday, February 10, 2026, calling on California Governor Gavin Newsom to remove a network of covert license plate readers deployed across Southern California.
The groups' researchers identified approximately 40 license plate readers in San Diego and Imperial counties, with more than two dozen hidden in construction barrels. The groups obtained some permits from the California Department of Transportation showing that the Border Patrol and Drug Enforcement Administration had applied for permission to place readers along state highways.
Reported impact
Privacy activists stated they believe the covert license plate readers feed data into a U.S. Border Patrol predictive intelligence program that scans the country's roadways for suspicious travel patterns to identify and detain people whose travel patterns it deems suspicious. The groups said the readers are monitoring millions of American drivers nationwide.
Index analysis
An Associated Press investigation published in November 2025 revealed that U.S. Border Patrol had hidden license plate readers in ordinary traffic safety equipment and camouflaged them by placing them inside orange and yellow construction barrels on highways in Arizona. The data collected by the Border Patrol plate readers is fed into a predictive intelligence program.
Governance controls
The letter from privacy groups asked California's administration to investigate and release the relevant permits, revoke them, and initiate the removal of the devices. The groups stated they could not determine the ownership of every device identified.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.