Cheltenham changed its mind about buying an AI-powered surveillance camera after confusion over its license plate reader
Several residents had expressed concern before the camera approval last month that the commissioners didn't understand what they were voting on.
Cheltenham canceled plans to buy a new surveillance camera because it includes an automatic license plate reader.
The board of commissioners had approved the purchase of the $35,000 AI-powered Packetalk camera in September to monitor a township construction site, with an eye toward using the camera at community events in the future.
Residents at the Sept. 16 meeting told officials before the vote that the camera has an ALPR — a license-plate reading technology which has raised privacy concerns for many across the region. Several township officials, including the board president and the police chief, said they weren’t sure whether the camera included an ALPR or not. Township Manager Jonathan Altshul said he didn’t think there was an ALPR on the camera. The commissioners voted to approve the camera anyway.
Several residents expressed concern before the vote that township officials were unclear on the surveillance tool they were approving.
“If you don’t even know if that’s a license plate reader or not and you’re ready to vote, I’m not filled with confidence about this board,” one resident said at the meeting.
“When you look at the packet it’s one of the first things listed,” another resident said. “I think the concern is not even knowing it has ALPR on it.”
The leader of Packetalk has also faced legal challenges. Packetalk’s CEO, Tamer Zakhary, was charged in 2023 with selling Chinese surveillance tools banned under the National Defense Authorization Act as his product, asking a manufacturer to change the color and logo to hide it, and lying to public safety clients about compliance.
The federal charges were dropped without explanation or prejudice, meaning prosecutors are allowed to charge Zakhary again for the same thing in the future.
Board President Matthew Areman and other officials said at the September meeting that they didn’t intend to use the camera as a license plate reader regardless.
Altshul said at an Oct. 14 committee meeting that he asked IT Director Michael Rubin to hold off on purchasing the camera shortly after hearing feedback at the September meeting. Rubin had proposed the camera at a committee meeting earlier in September that fell on Altshul’s second day of work. An agenda for the October meeting included a memo from Altshul and Rubin.
“I misspoke in stating that the cameras do not have Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) and Artificial Intelligence technology, when in fact they do,” Altshul wrote in the Oct. 5 memo. “Upon learning of my error, I asked staff not to purchase the surveillance trailer.”
Commissioners and residents praised Altshul and his staff at the October meeting for changing course.
“Thank you for hearing our questions and the public’s questions ... and coming up with a different plan,” Commissioner Emily Stine said. “It’s very much appreciated.”
Cheltenham still has Packetalk cameras at Wall Park, but a township spokesperson reiterated on Oct. 13 that those do not use AI or ALPRs.
Inquirer Greater Abington
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