Starting this week, Amazon’s Ring will no longer allow police to request doorbell camera footage from users.
On Wednesday, Ring announced it will end its “Request for Assistance” tool, which enables police and public safety agencies to request and obtain doorbell camera footage through the Neighbors app.
According to Eric Kuhn, head of Neighbors, law enforcement can still make public posts in the app and share safety tips, updates, and community events.
The latest update represents Ring’s ongoing response to privacy concerns, limiting police activity on the Neighbors app amid scrutiny over its relationship with law enforcement agencies.
Critics warn that increased partnerships and user reporting could turn neighborhoods into surveillance zones and escalate racial profiling incidents.
In 2021, Ring altered its policy to enhance transparency by making police requests visible to the public through its Neighbors app.
Previously, law enforcement agencies could privately email Ring owners near active investigation areas to request video footage.
“Now, Ring hopefully will altogether be out of the business of platforming casual and warrantless police requests for footage to its users,” said Matthew Guariglia, a senior policy analyst at the digital rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation.
According to Ring, law enforcement can still access videos with a warrant, and they reserve the right to share footage without user consent in specific cases.
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