Amazon announces major change to Ring doorbell over controversial police footage requests
FOOTAGE captured from Ring doorbells can no longer be requested by police to be used in investigations, Amazon has announced.
Amazon, which bought Ring for a reported $1billion in 2015, said it has stopped allowing police to request user footage in its neighborhood watch app called Neighbors.
Law enforcement have been allowed to privately message users asking for footage since Amazon launched the Neighbours app in 2017.
In 2021, Ring made police requests for footage public inside the Neighbours app, which put an end to private messaging.
In on Wednesday, Ring said it is set to discontinue the Request for Assistance (RFA) tool that allowed police to obtain a homeowners material.
"Public safety agencies like fire and police departments can still use the Neighbors app to share helpful safety tips, updates, and community events," Eric Kuhn, head of Neighbors, wrote in the post.
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"They will no longer be able to use the RFA tool to request and receive video in the app."
Sharing doorbell footage with police is not unique to Ring
It has been reported that Google also shares footage obtained via Nest doorbell devices with law enforcement.
The firm's terms of service state that it may hand over video from Nest doorbells to police in extreme life threatening situations.
"If we reasonably believe that we can prevent someone from dying or from suffering serious physical harm, we may provide information to a government agency," the company says.
"For example, in the case of bomb threats, school shootings, kidnappings, suicide prevention and missing persons cases.
"We still consider these requests in light of applicable laws and our policies."
A spokesperson told CNET that Google "may disclose information to law enforcement without a subpoena or a warrant" - at least in the US, under the Electronic Communications Privacy Act.
The spokesman added that Google attempts to notify users beforehand.
Police will still be able to obtain Ring video footage using a search warrant or subpoena.
Ring may also provide footage to police in "cases involving imminent danger of death or serious physical injury to any person," according to a letter the company sent to Sen. Ed Markey in 2022, when responding to questions regarding its police partnerships.
A by Politico found Ring to have shared homeowners' footage with law enforcement without their knowledge at least 11 times in the 12 months to July 2022.
In all of the 11 known cases this year, Amazon’s VP of Public Policy Brian Huseman said that police requests met the imminent-danger criteria.
In a statement to The Sun at the time, a Ring spokesperson said: "It’s simply untrue that Ring gives anyone unfettered access to customer data or video, as we have repeatedly made clear to our customers and others."