‘Neighborhood Watch of 2020’
Critics and fans chime in with worry, praise for Amazon Ring doorbell cams
Amid concerns about privacy and profiling, Ring says its mission is to help make neighborhoods safer.
LIVONIA, Mich. – Less than five hours. That’s all it took Livonia Police to arrest a man, who hours earlier was caught on video posted on Ring’s Neighbors app rummaging through the bed of a pickup parked in a driveway.
Detectives quickly recognized 60-year-old Jeffrey Couch when they saw the video posted by an app user in mid-August. Within a week, he pleaded no contest in court to two attempted larceny charges and was sentenced to 30 days in jail.
“I truly believe this is the Neighborhood Watch of 2020,” said Livonia Police Capt. Ronald Taig, whose force was one of the first law enforcement agencies in Michigan – and is one of more than 400 across the country – to partner with the Ring Neighbors app that is owned by Amazon.
Recognizing the growing proliferation of home security cameras – in doorbells, on floodlights and porches and at back doors – many law enforcement agencies are jumping on the latest tech bandwagon to spot possible crime trends, share safety information and request videos from app users in an effort to stave off and solve crimes.
But Amazon’s Ring app (and others like it) and the idea of law enforcement joining the “real-time crime and safety alerts” community is raising concerns about privacy, profiling, less than transparent public-private partnerships and what critics see is another step closer to a Big Brother police state.
Among the worries of some critics is video captured by Ring and other security systems being stored online by Amazon and other companies.
“Part of where my concern starts is the secretive way this all came about,” said Chris Gilliard, a professor at Macomb Community College in Warren, Michigan.Amazon did not (initially) tell the number of police across the country they’ve partnered with. That’s no way a public service should operate,” he said.
In October, more than 30 civil rights groups in the U.S. signed a letter with concerns, saying the police partnerships “exemplify the company’s willingness to do what it takes to expand their data empire ... Amazon Ring partnerships with police departments threaten civil liberties, privacy and civil rights, and exist without oversight or accountability.”
Ring disputes many of the claims in the letter, say
ing its mission is to help make neighborhoods safer, including the free app tool that connects communities and their local law enforcement agencies.
“We have taken care to design these features in a way that keeps users in control and protects their privacy. The Neighbors app has strict community guidelines, trained moderators, user flagging capabilities and other tools in place to create a safe place for all members of the community to talk about what’s happening in their neighborhoods,” Ring said.
“We take this very seriously and have invested many resources, tools, and human power to ensure we uphold a standard of trust and civility,” Ring said.
More than 400 law enforcement agencies across the country have joined the app as partners.
Ring launched the Neighbors app in May 2018, and anyone can download and use it. Law enforcement can join, too, and view comments or videos that users post inside and outside their jurisdiction.
Law enforcement goes through Ring to make a video request and must reference a relevant case and videos within a limited time and area. Ring doesn’t provide information about users unless a user chooses to share video with police. Then, the user’s email and address are disclosed.
Users can say no and opt out of future requests. Police said they don’t have direct access to a user’s system.
The Free Press couldn’t find examples of law enforcement using a warrant to obtain video, but would likely have the legal right to do so.
The Detroit Police Department signed an agreement, “but that doesn’t mean the officers have the authority to use it,” Deputy Chief Grant Ha said.
Ha said some people have been trained on how to use the app and the department is developing policies and standard operating procedures.
“It not investigative tool, but investigative tool,” Ha said.
At the Livonia Police Department, Taig said, the partnership has been “nothing but successful for us.”
“If I’m a crime victim, there’s at least a chance to get this person because we have them on video,” he said. “It’s probably not for everybody.”