All articles tagged with #amazon ring
Ring Doorbell's Super Bowl ad for the AI feature 'Search Party,' which scans neighborhood Ring cameras to help locate missing pets, has provoked privacy backlash and dystopian critiques online, with critics warning it could enable mass surveillance—even as Amazon says the tool is free, aimed at reuniting lost pets and backed by a $1 million donation to shelters.
Amazon Ring is discontinuing its Request for Assistance (RFA) tool, which allowed law enforcement to request video footage from users without a warrant. This move has been welcomed by privacy groups, but concerns remain about police requesting footage without a warrant. While seen as a victory by some, advocates are calling for broader legislative action to address the privacy implications of private surveillance partnerships like those undertaken by Ring.
Amazon Ring will now require US law enforcement to obtain a warrant to access doorbell footage from individual users, marking a significant shift from its previous policy. The company's decision to discontinue its "request for assistance" feature comes after facing criticism for facilitating warrantless police investigations and lax privacy policies. While some experts view this as a step in the right direction, concerns remain about law enforcement and Ring's ability to determine what constitutes an emergency for accessing footage without a warrant or user consent.
Users of internet-enabled security camera systems like Amazon Ring or Google Nest can protect themselves from hackers by resetting default username and password, using two-factor authentication, keeping devices on a separate network, regularly checking for updates, and not recording anything private. Failure to secure these devices could lead to hackers snooping around digital networks and potentially gaining access to sensitive personal data. Amazon recently agreed to pay $5.8 million to the Federal Trade Commission to settle allegations it gave its Ring surveillance employees "unfettered" access to personal videos.