Amazon Ring Drops Flock Deal as Privacy Bakclash Hits
Synopsis
Amazon Ring has officially dropped its plan to incorporate Flock Safety’s plate-reading technology into its doorbell cameras. The decision comes after a week of public outcry and a contentious Super Bowl commercial that stoked concerns about neighbourhood-wide surveillance. Though the companies cited “technical resources” as a reason for the split, the move comes following reports that the tech has been used to facilitate immigration searches. Ring users can still share footage on a strictly voluntary basis, but the more entrenched link to police-focused tech is now kaput.
Ring, the Amazon-owned doorbell camera company, has dumped its plans to launch a security service and with Flock that includes surveilling around homes using the information collected by its collection of neighbourhood watch style social apps. The decision follows weeks of backlash on social media and questions about how user video data could potentially be used by law enforcement.
- Ring backs off proposed partnership with Flock Safety.
- The change comes after public outcry and privacy concerns.
- Ring says no user videos were shared, in part because the partnership never went into effect.
- Neither company has a relationship with ICE, the companies say.
- Ring says that federal agencies are unable to request videos through its app.
- The dispute escalated following a Super Bowl commercial and a set of viral social media messages.
Amazon’s Ring has called off its partnership with Flock Safety, after weeks of public scrutiny and criticism over how the company markets itself as a civilian version of law enforcement. The companies on Thursday confirmed the decision, which they described as mutual.
Ring had aimed to add Flock’s license plate reading camera system into its Community Requests feature. That puts that feature into play locally: Police can ask Ring users to share video footage if it might help with an investigation. The integration would have paired Ring’s home security cameras with Flock’s street-level license plate readers.
The integration would have taken longer and required more resources than anticipated, Ring said in a statement on its website. As a result, both companies consented to abandon the plan. The move was also confirmed by Flock’s chief communications officer, who said the decision was mutual.
Public fears mounted after viral posts that Immigration and Customs Enforcement, had access to Ring camera footage. Ring has forcefully denied this charge. Ring has no relationship to ICE and does not provide information or assistance to ICE, a company spokesman said, adding, “Ring does not work with data services companies that intercept video feeds or have otherwise discovered extremely sensitive info unauthorised in the public domain. The company also noted that federal agencies were not permitted to make requests through the Community Requests feature.
The situation has escalated in recent weeks after Ring ran a Super Bowl commercial promoting a feature that it designed to help locate lost pets. Some on social media said the ad was troubling for how much it could compile and use video data. Older doubts about Ring’s working relationships with the police also reappeared online.
Users are never forced to send in their videos, Ring explained. Users may choose to ignore it when a local police department puts out a request in the Ring Neighbours app. They can also disable the Community Requests toggle in their app settings. When a user opts to share a video, it is processed by a third-party service called Axon and then shared with the requesting agency. The footage is managed by the local department under its own rules and the law.
Flock Safety, too, has come under scrutiny. In one case last year, 404 Media, an independent outlet, reported that some local police departments used Flock’s license plate readers in searches related to immigration. Flock has indicated that it doesn’t have a direct relationship with ICE and that federal agencies cannot directly tap into its camera systems. The firm also conducted an in-house audit and reported that it had terminated access to Illinois data from dozens of agencies that were performing searches for purposes not permitted under state law.
The case underscores increasing concerns among privacy advocates about how technology companies cooperate with law enforcement agencies. Supporters say such tools help solve crimes and make communities safer. Both critics have argued that clearer rules and harder-nosed limits are necessary to protect personal data.
While the partnership between Ring and Flock was never rolled out, it highlights how fraught concerns around home surveillance have grown. For now, Ring says no user videos were shared under the cancelled program, and the company will still look at what it does with its tools.
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