Rekor Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: REKR) has called on technology providers, law enforcement agencies, lawmakers, and standards organizations to adopt a common, vendor-neutral framework for the use of automated license plate recognition (ALPR) technology, according to a company statement.

The Columbia, Md.-based company outlined three pillars it says should form the basis of a responsible ALPR standard. The first would require that non-hotlist plate data be immediately protected with cryptographic encryption or tokenization, with re-identification permitted only upon receipt of a valid warrant or court order. The second calls for retention schedules tied to the purpose and severity of an alert rather than a fixed time period. The third requires that video or image evidence supporting an ALPR alert be cryptographically authenticated at or near the point of capture to allow later verification of its integrity.

Robert A. Berman, chair and chief executive of Rekor Systems, said in the statement that the current debate over ALPR is producing unfavorable outcomes for all parties involved. "We should stop arguing over whether ALPR should exist and establish clear rules for how it must operate," Berman said.

The company said the proposed framework would be outcome-based and would not require the use of any specific vendor's products, but would require each system to demonstrate that the stated protections function as described.

Rekor also called on law enforcement agencies to incorporate these protections into procurement requirements and operating policies, and urged lawmakers to regulate for measurable outcomes rather than impose broad prohibitions on the technology category.

The company said ALPR has historically supported functions including stolen-vehicle recovery, missing-person alerts, and tolling operations, and that public-policy concerns emerged when localized data was aggregated into broader searchable networks without corresponding access and retention controls.