I want to chop down a flock camera
26d 10h ago by lemmy.world/u/bizzle in Illegalism@lemmy.dbzer0.com
Can I just come at it from behind and cut off the pole with an angle grinder or do I need to be more sophisticated? I'd do it in the middle of the night
Pep talk:
An angle grinder can work if you use a cutoff wheel, but knowing the camera's technology, the likelyhood of a vibration sensor pinging back home is too high for my recommendations. Plan to be out within a minute or two, as you wouldn't want a cop responding to it. If it is chopped, dont bring it with you, make sure there is a very nearby method of breaking the camera's innards. Angle grinders do not work as well on plastic as metal in many cases, as plastic will melt from the heat and bind to the disk. A possible solution could be a sledgehammer, if you feel confident in your ability to wield it.
Other approaches can work well too, but it depends on how much damage you want. Some speak about laser pointers, but I advise against that. You'd need an 840-960nm laser of sufficient power, and that can blind innocent people within proximity. What I've seen mention of is a spraypaint can on a stick, but that only damages easily replaceable and cheap covers, so it's only a temporary fix that'd heighten police interest. Nonetheless though, its a low-risk way of telling them to Flock Off.
If you want to stay hidden during night hours, lining things with 840nm IR LEDs will obscure the vision (+920nm works too, but 840nm is the most common). This won't work on daylight hours though, as that uses visual light more than IR.
Also, phone stays at home. Geofencing, Bluetooth signatures, WiFi pings, and SIM tracking, etc. are way too prevalent to risk. And as always, stay safe when using an angle grinder, those fuckers can hospitalize. Park far away, if a car is used, and consider using a "Flock Off" ESP32 device to detect for nearby flock cameras, github page here: https://github.com/colonelpanichacks/flock-you...And I think the last thing worth mentioning is to have gloves and face coverings. Aaaaaand I've yet another new thing, avoid speaking, and consider obscuring your walk pattern if you do appear in it.
To find nearby cameras, this website works well for me: https://maps.deflock.org/
I have a 60v battery powered angle grinder w/ cutoff wheel that kicks a surprising amount of ass and the poles don't look like they're too crazy, looks like aluminum? I also have a 5# sledge that I reckon could smash it pretty good, I'm a pretty big dude so it would probably only take a couple swings.
I considered blinding it but decided that if I can blind it with a laser it can probably see me and that footage would presumably already be in the cloud.
I'm going to do a practice run on a piece of aluminum pole, I think I could chop it and smash it and get the fuck out of there in under two minutes but I'm old and fat so maybe not 😂 phone 100% stays home and my wife in well trained in the art of lying to pigs
Band saw, no vibration, no sparks, cuts metal/plastic like hot knife through butter. You're only limited by the size of the bandsaw opening so if the pole is too thick it won't work otherwise your best choice imo
I'll check out portable bandsaws 🤔
I will say, steel is a very likely chance for the poles. Namely, that steel's qualities are more adequate for resisting loads, and that steel is cheaper than aluminum, which is likely an optimization Flock would've made to their internal costs. I'd bank on between 3/32" and 3/16" steel wall thickness of the tubes, I wouldn't imagine they'd need more than that.
Also, just spitballing the idea if things dont go smoothly and you wanna do something to it, even if not everything. If you cut a portion away, but didn't get through all of it, you can try using the sledgehammer in a pinch to bend the pole at the cut point, such that it's not able to see the road or cars nearly as clearly.
What do you mean by the LED lining? Like...on clothing?
Specifically IR LEDs in the 840nm range. How you apply it if you choose to do so is up to you, but it obscures vision for the camers's night mode. What some people have done is put an array of these 840nm LEDs on a little handheld surface, which they then pointed at the camera as they walked by it. It won't damage anything, but it does not see well while being beamed.
What you could try is wearing a hat with a mount on it that's just filled with loads of these LEDs. Doesn't need to be anything fancy, just gotta work. Still avoid being caught by the camera, but its a nice redundancy if something goes wrong.
Edit: Found a video to give a rundown. They basically used an infrared floodlight from an online retailer. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nt1e1QHDES8
And yet another another thing to note, which is honestly kinds scary about just how much this surveillance has progressed, is that statements from Police officers and Flock representatives state that the cameras can identify individuals by their walk cycle. Absolutely mind-boggling, and in some ways I feel I want to see it to believe it, but I wouldn't be surprised to find this is true. So yeah, stay away from the camera, and if it's pertinent enough, maybe put something near the crotch area in your pants such that your gait is altered.
Thanks for the info! I wonder if wearing extra baggy clothing would also help fuck up the gait recognition.
No fucking way 3g
Before someone comes in complaining about these cameras being there to cut emissions: If they wanted to do that, they could have made roads inaccessible to cars and expanded public transit, like in Paris.
Emissions can be reduced by other means, such as requiring smog checks on cars every few years in order to register your vehicle. That is how California manages it.
This camera bullshit is purely about tracking and logging your license plate everywhere under the guise of “reducing emissions.”
Also, expanding on this with an interview:
Don't bring any electronics, including phone, watch, or tile tags/airbags on keys etc.
Don't forget to mask up
Probably also put a small stone in my boot to throw off gait recognition
Hey, I got a book on gait recognition. I could share it with you if youd like.