By: Bryce Moore
Posted: Jul 27, 2026 / 08:59 PM HST
Updated: Jul 27, 2026 / 10:14 PM HST
HONOLULU (KHON2) — Surveillance technology is expanding across Oahu, and Honolulu’s new police chief wants more of it.
Automated license plate readers already in place will soon feed into a real-time crime center, but some said there are red flags about mistakes made by artificial intelligence.
HPD Chief David Lazar wants to expand automated license plate readers across Oahu. He said the cameras will feed into a real-time crime center starting in August 2026.
“We will find out in real time if the car is stolen, if the car is wanted in a crime, if it’s being driven by a missing person. This all increases public safety. What’s important is that we maintain our data,” Lazar said.
Lazar said this type of up-to-the-minute surveillance has improved officer efficiency in other jurisdictions.
“They help us, again, lead us to apprehending suspects. They make us more efficient in the work that we do. And we see agencies go to these tools in this country and we have to embrace it as well,” Lazar said.
Cybersecurity experts who have installed similar systems at private commercial sites have concerns over law enforcement using the technology in public spaces.
“They’re not only gathering information, but they’re feeding into AI. And as we know, AI can sometimes make mistakes,” said CYPAC Deep Security CEO Attila Seress. “A few years ago, some woman and children were forced out of their minivan, and they had to lie at gunpoint, face down on the sidewalk in Colorado, all because the AI hallucinated and instead of identifying their license plate as being a minivan, for some reason, they thought it was a stolen motorcycle.”
Chief Lazar said community trust and clear policies will be essential.
“We want the community to embrace these tools, but also hold us accountable to do the right thing with them, to have the policies in place, and let’s see the results,” Lazar said.
“Although it may help reduce crime, you have to remember, this is a blanket surveillance tool. All this is creating kind of like this ‘Big Brother’ environment that people are really upset about,” Seress said.
“Big Brother” is a term from George Orwell’s novel “1984” that describes an all-seeing government that constantly monitors its citizens.
The ACLU of Hawaii said in a statement, “The ACLU of Hawaii opposes the expansion of automated license plate readers across the islands, especially when they are used by law enforcement. These systems create a detailed record of people’s movements, including visits to medical providers, places of worship, and protests—even when they are not suspected of a crime. They risk turning a targeted law-enforcement tool into a system of persistent, mass surveillance. Hawaii should not expand the use of this technology.”
Dozens of ALPR cameras are scattered across Oahu and Maui. There are also a handful on the Big Island and one on Kauai. Click here to view a community map with ALPR device locations and click here for more information about HPD’s policies.
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