The Flock backlash is coming for retail

Retail giants like Ulta Beauty and Lowe's are being called on to end their contracts with Flock Safety.

David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images Flock Safety has seen a nationwide backlash against its surveillance system technology.

In response, some city governments have canceled their contracts with Flock.

Consumers are now also calling out companies like Ulta and Lowe's, which have Flock contracts.

City governments have felt the heat to drop their contracts with Flock Safety .

Now, retail giants are feeling it too.

As the backlash against Flock's security products continues, critics are targeting retail stores that have known partnerships with the company.

"There is simply no need for Ulta Beauty to be one of Flock's biggest commercial customers," Rachel LaPointe, a content creator and Substack writer, said in a video that had 732,000 views across her TikTok and Instagram as of Friday.

LaPointe, who has a Substack newsletter focused on gendered police violence, told Business Insider that her issues with Flock stem from reported instances of the surveillance system being used to track women.

"My alarm bells started ringing," LaPointe said, adding that she was surprised by Ulta's partnership with Flock, considering that a majority of the retailer's customer base is women.

An Ulta Beauty spokesperson said that Flock cameras are deployed at fewer than 1% of Ulta's 1,500-plus locations and are used to support criminal investigations, particularly into organized retail theft .

Flock has advertised its advanced surveillance system as a tool for deterring and investigating crimes, including homicides.

One of its notable products includes an automated license plate reader (ALPR) that records vehicle sightings and license plates.

Flock says its ALPRs do not use facial recognition and that private customers can control how long the camera data is retained and whether it's shared with law enforcement.