Go Flock Yourself (GFY) is a simple tool for protecting privacy by obscuring spy cameras without damaging them. Simply stretch a rubber band around the tines of the GFY. Then put a grocery bag around those tines. Slide the apparatus over the spy camera and then pull down gently so the rubber band slides off the apparatus and cinching the bag to the spy camera. The screw head fits the typical handles for things like brooms, paint rollers, etc. Disclaimer: You should only be using this apparatus on property you have a right to touch. For instance, let's say you want to go skinny dipping in your pool but don't want your camera to record you because you can't trust cloud providers to not have a data leak and then have your junk on the internet. Then this would be a very handy tool. I merely made it. You are responsible for how you use it.
      • infuziSporg [e/em/eir]@hexbear.netEnglish
        2 days

        Are you talking about the same America that I’m living in? People just got sentenced for simply taking part in a noise demo or doing something related to it, and someone who printed a few zines got 30 years’ jail time.

        Aiming for something “less criminal” is not going to save you. What will save you is not being traceable.

      • infuziSporg [e/em/eir]@hexbear.netEnglish
        2 days

        Flock would be SO OWNED if they lost a couple hours of footage, if they were able to fix the problem in seconds versus the half-hour time commitment on the offensive side, and if they had DNA on the rubber band that could still convict someone of the same vandalism charge.

        Not doing any damage is trickier than doing damage, and ends up leaving more of a trail. It ends up being reminiscent of “let’s all do a nonviolent civil disobedience and turn ourselves in to overwhelm the jails’ capacities”.

        • taco@anarchist.nexusEnglish
          2 days

          Nobody here’s telling you not to smash the cameras.

          This isn’t for you though. This is for people who, lacking another option, wouldn’t do anything. It’s less smash vs. cover, but rather cover vs. ignore.

        • MarxMadness [comrade/them]@hexbear.netEnglish
          2 days

          If you see a fruit fly in your kitchen, do you jump straight to calling the exterminator and moving out for a few days while they fumigate your place?

          Cops don’t break out their full suite of investigative tools on every single crime, and prosecutors need at least a few facts to hang their hat on if they’re going to overcharge you. Cops don’t even fingerprint on many burglaries in bigger cities. The greatest possible response is not the likely response.

          • therealdries@lemmy.dbzer0.com
            2 days

            Cops don’t break out their full suite of investigative tools on every single crime

            That depends on the crime. They barely treat rape as a crime - that’s why they barely investigate it. Start interfering with their precious surveillance state, though, and you might very quickly find yourself a much, much higher priority than the guy who murdered five sex workers last month.

  • Blue_Morpho@lemmy.world
    2 days

    I don’t understand the design. I looked at what a flock camera looks like and this doesn’t seem like it would be stable. It would snap around the front to block the lens but then slide or pivot down over time.

    • taco@anarchist.nexusEnglish
      2 days

      From the summary:

      Simply stretch a rubber band around the tines of the GFY. Then put a grocery bag around those tines. Slide the apparatus over the spy camera and then pull down gently so the rubber band slides off the apparatus and cinching the bag to the spy camera. The screw head fits the typical handles for things like brooms, paint rollers, etc.

      This device doesn’t cover the lens directly, it helps you use a pole to get a plastic bag up to hard-to-reach places.

      • walden@wetshav.ingEnglish
        2 days

        That’s helpful for understanding the purpose of the device.

        I’m still having trouble imagining how it works. Oh well.