Amazon wants to deliver crime news and fear to Ring doorbell owners

guest · Nov 11, 2019

With Ring, Amazon is building a smart city that should worry us all
Ring cameras are providing Amazon with a giant surveillance network
November 11, 2019
https://www.wired.co.uk/article/ring-camera-uk-amazon

Amazon's Ring doorbells and security cameras have found their way into thousands of homes.
Ring's cameras have been hugely successful. Company founder and CEO Jamie Siminoff has claimed that during a 2015 trial with the Los Angeles Police Department, the cameras reduced burglaries in some neighbourhoods by "as much as 55 per cent".

People become accustomed to being monitored as they move around their neighbourhoods and travel to work. The surveillance is even celebrated. After Halloween, the company bragged that its doorbells were used 15 million times on "busiest day of the year for Ring devices in the US".
It's the opening salvo in a scrap that all the big technology companies want a part.
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guest · Nov 19, 2019

Amazon lets police ask for Ring videos that are more than a month old
New details revealed in a letter
November 19, 2019
https://www.theverge.com/2019/11/19/20973173/amazon-ring-police-video-privacy-markey-senate-letter

Amazon’s Ring home security company lets police ask users for videos that are up to 45 days old and 12 hours long, Amazon said in a letter released today.

Ring has been the source of privacy concerns for months, as the company, which offers doorbell cameras, faces questions about how it works with law enforcement.
Those reports prompted Sen. Edward Markey (D-MA) to ask Amazon for more information on Ring’s privacy practices.
Today, Markey released Amazon’s responses. To ask for video footage, the company says, police must provide a specific case number, but otherwise doesn’t require any evidence for police to request footage.

In one notable exchange, Amazon explained the scope of videos police can request. In addition to requesting up to 12 hours of video produced in the last 45 days, police can ask for footage within a maximum of 0.5 square miles. Police are prohibited from sending “batch” requests for footage, according to the company, and users can select which videos they want to share.
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ronjor · Nov 20, 2019

Senators ask Bezos for answers on how Amazon’s smart doorbells retain videos and personal data

Lauren Feiner@lauren_feiner
Five Democratic senators asked Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos to answer questions about how its home security system Ring retains and secures customers’ data and videos.
The senators raised concerns about Ring’s reportedly lax rules around how employees in Ukraine could access customers’ videos.
One of the senators who signed the letter, Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., released findings of an investigation into the company on Tuesday.
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ronjor · Nov 20, 2019

Amazon defends Ring’s relationship with police as U.S. senator resurfaces privacy concerns

by Monica Nickelsburg on November 20, 2019
Ring is attempting to shed some light on the situation. The company defended itself in a letter to U.S. Sen. Ed Markey released Wednesday. The letter echoed comments made by Ring CEO Jamie Siminoff in an interview with GeekWire following the Amazon devices launch event in Seattle on Sept. 25. During that discussion, Siminoff said customers only share surveillance footage with police on a voluntary basis, and the company never shares with police the identities of those who decline the requests.
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guest · Nov 28, 2019

Civil Rights Groups Demand Congress Investigate Amazon’s 'Surveillance Empire'
November 26, 2019
https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/...gress-investigate-amazons-surveillance-empire

Fifteen civil rights groups launched a major campaign on Monday calling on Congress to investigate how Amazon and its home surveillance company Ring violate civil liberties, particularly through partnerships with law enforcement.
Part of the campaign's intention is to have consumers think twice before they purchase Ring products during the holidays, said Evan Greer, deputy director of Fight for the Future.

“At this point, lawmakers need to escalate the investigation and hold hearings demanding answers and accountability from Amazon when it comes to their surveillance empire and monopolistic business practices.”
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guest · Nov 29, 2019

Amazon Plans Ring Facial Recognition-Based ‘Watch List’, Report
November 29, 2019
https://threatpost.com/amazon-ring-facial-recognition-watch-list/150681/

Amazon is planning to use facial recognition software and its Ring smart home security devices to create an artificial-intelligence enabled “neighborhood watch list,” according to reports.
According to internal documents reviewed by The Intercept, the “watch list” would automatically alert a Ring owner with a “suspicious activity prompt” on their mobile phones when an individual that was deemed “suspicious” was captured in the camera frame.

The report, unveiled this week, said it remains unclear who would have access to these neighborhood watch lists or how they would be collected and compiled. However, [...] it may involve Ring’s controversial partnership with more than 600 police departments across the country, to allow them to request access to camera footage from camera owners.
The report also leaves unclear what constitutes a “suspicious” individual, and how facial features of “suspicious” individuals could be collected in the first place.

The Intercept report comes a week after senators penned a letter to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos demanding that Amazon disclose how it’s securing Ring home-security device footage – and who is allowed to access that footage
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The Intercept: Amazon’s Ring Planned Neighborhood “Watch Lists” Built on Facial Recognition

ronjor · Dec 3, 2019

Ring let police view map of video doorbell installations for over a year

Alfred Ng December 3, 2019
The company once offered a map, now withdrawn, that allowed police to zoom in to see the specific location of Ring customers.
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hawki · Dec 4, 2019

"‘**** CRIME:’ Inside Ring’s Quest to Become Law Enforcement’s Best Friend...

[This is the second of a three-part series exploring how Ring transformed from start-up pitch to the technology powering Amazon's privatized surveillance network throughout the United States.]

Ring likes to throw bangers for police.

Here’s what you’ll find at a Ring party: Open bar. Free food. Live music. A "special recognition ceremony." Free Ring doorbells. A live viewing of Shark Tank, the show that launched what would become Ring and to which company founder Jamie Siminoff eventually returned as a shark. And, most importantly, an appearance from retired basketball player Shaquille O’Neal.

You could find all this at a private party that Ring hosted for police at the 2018 International Association of Chiefs of Police conference in Orlando..."

https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/bjw9e8/inside-rings-quest-to-become-law-enforcements-best-friend

guest · Dec 10, 2019

Ring's Neighbors app is revealing device locations, report says
December 9, 2019
https://www.cnet.com/news/rings-neighbors-app-is-revealing-device-locations-report-says/

Data found on Ring's Neighbors app can reveal the exact location of the company's devices -- and, by extent, users' homes, according to a Monday report. Neighbors, a free app from the smart doorbell company, allows users to post and comment on crime and security information in their communities.

In its report, Gizmodo said it collected data over the last month linked to around 65,800 posts on the Neighbors app and found "hidden geographic coordinates that are connected to each post." That includes latitude and longitude with the precision of up to six decimal points, the report says.
The findings reflect the mounting privacy concerns surrounding the home surveillance company.
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ronjor · Dec 18, 2019

Amazon’s Ring security cameras targeted by consumer groups following hacks

by Monica Nickelsburg on December 18, 2019
Amazon is in the crosshairs of consumer groups — led by the digital rights organization Fight for the Future — this week following a series of hacks into Ring security cameras.
The organizations issued a “product warning” Tuesday urging consumers not to purchase Ring cameras, claiming the devices are unsafe.
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ronjor · Dec 24, 2019

Ring's Security Woes Cause Some Tech Review Sites to Rethink Glowing Endorsements

Dell Cameron 24 Dec 2019
In the wake of reporting by Gizmodo and other outlets this year concerning Ring’s troubled security and privacy practices, Fight for the Future has launched a campaign calling on tech review sites, such as Consumer Reports and PC Magazine, to suspend recommending Ring products.
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guest · Jan 6, 2020

Ring CEO defends police partnerships as it rolls out new privacy tools
January 6, 2020
https://www.cnet.com/news/ring-ceo-defends-police-partnerships-as-it-rolls-out-new-privacy-tools/

[...] Ring, which is owned by Amazon, on Monday revealed tighter privacy and security measures for its video doorbells, cameras and lights, including a new Control Center for users' privacy settings. These features, unveiled at the start of the CES tech show, are part of an effort to strengthen security on Ring devices and better inform its customers.

Ring also created a new Control Center [...] allowing customers to opt out of receiving any requests for video footage from local police.
Ring said it's always allowed users to opt out of receiving video requests through an unsubscribe link or a call to customer service, but adding that option into the Control Center will make it easier for customers to turn off these requests.

Siminoff offered a full-throated defense of these police partnerships, saying that one such video helped save a kidnapping victim in Texas. He also rejected the notion that his company is helping build a surveillance state for police.
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"If people responded to short-term controversy by immediately getting out of something they believe in and that is actually doing great things for the world, that's not the planet that I'd want to live on," he said. "I hope that humans and business people are tougher than that."
Going forward, Siminoff said the Control Center will become a new platform to give customers more privacy and account security settings.
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ronjor · Jan 8, 2020

Ring's Security Update Isn't Enough, Sen. Ron Wyden Says

Tom McKay 08 Jan 2020
“Requiring two-factor for new accounts is a step in the right direction, but there are millions of consumers who already have a Ring camera in their homes who remain needlessly vulnerable to hackers,” Wyden wrote. “Amazon needs to go further—by protecting all Ring devices with two-factor authentication.
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guest · Jan 28, 2020

How Amazon’s Ring is creating a surveillance network with video doorbells
Here’s everything we know about Amazon’s video doorbell and the controversies surrounding it
January 28, 2020
https://www.vox.com/2019/9/5/20849846/amazon-ring-explainer-video-doorbell-hacks

The Ring video doorbell is Amazon’s latest infiltration into Americans’ everyday lives, and even though it offers customers convenience and a sense of security, it’s also attracting scrutiny.

Amazon already dominates how we shop for goods online; its Web Services arm is the backbone of numerous internet companies; and its Prime Video and Music services are angling to become primary ways we watch and listen to media.
Now the company’s Ring cameras are stoking fears that the e-commerce giant is further encroaching on people’s privacy as Ring turns neighborhoods into surveillance operations and profits from the false perception that crime is on the rise. [...]
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guest · Jan 29, 2020

Amazon engineer calls for Ring to be shut down permanently
January 29, 2020
https://www.techspot.com/news/83768-amazon-engineer-calls-ring-shut-down-permanently.html

A hot potato: It appears that even Amazon workers think Ring is a privacy threat. One of the tech giant’s engineers has blasted the home-security camera firm, which Amazon acquired for $2 billion in 2018, calling for it to be shut down immediately.

Software engineer Max Eliaser was vocal about Ring and its privacy issues. "The deployment of connected home security cameras that allow footage to be queried centrally are simply not compatible with a free society," they wrote. "The privacy issues are not fixable with regulation and there is no balance that can be struck. Ring should be shut down immediately and not brought back."

Over 340 Amazon employees share our views on company business:https://t.co/x3Z5HAanYK
— Amazon Employees For Climate Justice (@AMZNforClimate) January 27, 2020
Ring has suffered a slew of negative publicity over the last 12 months.
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Despite the controversies, almost 400,000 Ring devices were sold in December, making it the company's best month to date. The firm said it has "millions" of customers worldwide.
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hawki · Jan 29, 2020

"Amazon's Ring security shares your personal data with Facebook and Google, [EFF] report says...

A report surfaced Monday suggesting that the Amazon-owned company shares tons of users' personal information with lots of different sources including Facebook, even if you don't have a Facebook account.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation published its findings after closely examining the Android version of the Ring app....

...this is done 'without meaningful user notification or consent and, in most cases, no way to mitigate the damage done,' the EFF said..."

https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech...es-user-info-facebook-report-says/4607444002/

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/01/ring-doorbell-app-packed-third-party-trackers

guest · Feb 2, 2020

Ring Drops a Major App Update, Placing Privacy and Security Settings Front and Center
January 31, 2020
https://gizmodo.com/ring-drops-a-major-app-update-putting-privacy-and-secu-1841397104

Ring has begun pushing out an update to its phone app with the aim of consolidating all of its security settings, [...]
The changes, teased at CES 2020, include implementation of a “Control Center” within the Ring app that grants customers easy access to a variety of security options, including two-factor authentication—an easy-to-use feature that, as Gizmodo has reported, all but entirely prevents cameras from being hijacked remotely.

All in all, the update is a step in the right direction for a company that’s been plagued over the past year by questions about its commitment to user privacy; to the point that, in fact, federal lawmakers had begun publicly criticizing its practices.
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Amazon's Ring will now allow users to opt out of all police video requests

You'll now be able to add and remove shared users on an account, restrict third-party access, view two-factor authentication settings, and (perhaps, most importantly) opt out of all video request notifications from law enforcement.

Uncovered in reporting by Motherboard and Gizmodo in 2019, the scale of Amazon's Neighbor Portal program is much larger than originally believed — and its various affiliations with law enforcement has raised alarming ethical questions.
In the new update, users will be able to see an "Active Law Enforcement Map" clarifying which local institutions are part of the Neighbor Portal network. They will also be able to disable requests for video from officials, whether or not they have received one in the past.
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guest · Feb 5, 2020

What to Know Before You Buy or Install Your Amazon Ring Camera
February 4, 2020
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/02/what-know-you-buy-or-install-your-amazon-ring-camera

So, you own or are thinking of buying a Ring camera. This post outlines a list of privacy and civil liberties concerns we have with Amazon’s Ring system so that you can be a more informed consumer, or—if you already own a Ring camera—be a more considerate neighbor.
If You’re Thinking of Buying a Ring Camera
1. You are not the only one who can access your footage.
Your Ring footage isn’t private. It’s in the cloud. That means that you are not the only one with access to your footage [...]
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guest · Feb 11, 2020

Ring’s new ‘Neighborly Moments’ feature lets you give a shout-out to a neighbor’s act of kindness
February 11, 2020
https://www.techhive.com/article/3526416/ring-neighborly-moments.html

Ring, the embattled maker of such popular smart security cams as the Ring Video Doorbell and the Ring Alarm, is looking to inject a little good news into the endless parade of stolen packages and “suspicious activity” reports in its controversial neighborhood watch app.

Ring just announced a new “Neighborly Moments” category in the Neighbors app that lets you—for once—highlight a good thing that happened on your street.
Among the examples served up by Amazon-owned Ring include videos of people shoveling each others driveways, neighbors moving the delivered packages of absent homeowners and apartment dwellers to more secure locations, and passersby cleaning up trash on the sidewalk.

The Neighborly Moments category adds a warm and fuzzy element to an app that’s drawn plenty of controversy in the past several months.
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Ring: Introducing ‘Neighborly Moments’: A New Way to Highlight Good Deeds on the Neighbors App

guest · Feb 15, 2020

Ring footage might not be very useful for catching criminals
An investigation suggests the cameras might only help as deterrents
February 15, 2020
https://www.engadget.com/2020/02/15/ring-footage-might-not-help-catch-criminals/

Ring has said that camera footage sent to police can help reduce burglaries and catch criminals, but how effective is it, really? It might not be as helpful as you might think. NBC News has conducted an investigation suggesting that Ring's video doorbells and security cameras haven't been of much use to at least some police forces.

Of the 40 law enforcement agencies the news outlet reached, just 13 said they'd made arrests after reviewing Ring footage, while two offered rough estimates. The remainder either made zero arrests (13 agencies) or didn't know how effective Ring had been despite partnerships that had lasted more than a year.
Crucially, none of the departments gathered data to gauge the usefulness of the Ring alliance, whether it was for pinpointing suspects or deterring crimes.

Ring has previously boasted that its technology led to a 55 percent drop in burglaries in one Los Angeles neighborhood based on LAPD data, but it's not certain to what degree the cameras are responsible or that this performance translates to other areas.
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NBC News: Cute videos, but little evidence: Police say Amazon Ring isn't much of a crime fighter

In general, Ring’s partnerships with local departments have not been in place long enough to draw firm conclusions about its effects on crime prevention. But anecdotally, even the departments who have used it the longest don’t have much tangible evidence of deterrence of thefts or apprehension of suspects.
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ronjor · Feb 18, 2020

Ring enables mandatory two-factor authentication and new privacy controls in response to scandals

By Jon Porter@JonPorty Feb 18, 2020
Amazon’s home security company Ring is changing the way users log into their accounts to increase security and control privacy, the company announced today. Starting this week, Ring will mandate a second layer of security by requiring users to enter a one-time six-digit code sent via email or SMS whenever they try and log in to see the state of their indoor and outdoor cameras. The company which makes the popular Ring Video Doorbell is also introducing new options for users to control when their data is shared with other companies.
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ronjor · Feb 19, 2020

Congress demands answers from Ring on police partnerships

Alfred Ng February 19, 2020
The House Oversight Committee wants to hear from all police departments that have worked with Ring, and also if they use Amazon's facial recognition.
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guest · Mar 12, 2020

Ring pauses data sharing practices, promises more privacy controls
After criticism, Amazon's Ring is hitting pause on its practice of sharing data with third parties
March 12, 2020
https://appleinsider.com/articles/2...ring-practices-promises-more-privacy-controls

In January, researchers at The Electronic Frontier Foundation discovered that Ring's Android app was spying on users and sending that data to analytics and marketing firms like Facebook, Google and MixPanel.

After that report, Ring promised to give users more control over their data through a new privacy dashboard and other transparency efforts. This week, in a statement to Engadget, Ring announced that it has stopped sharing data with third-party firms.

"We have temporarily paused the use of most third-party analytics services in the Ring apps and website while we work on providing users with more abilities to opt-out in Control Center," the spokesperson said.
Starting sometime this week, Ring users will also be able to explicitly opt-out of sharing data that would be used to serve personalized ads. In the wake of the EFF report, Ring also added the ability to opt-out of police video requests.
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ronjor · Apr 22, 2020

Ring may want to add facial recognition and more to cameras

By Alina Bradford April 22, 2020
Will your Ring security camera know your face soon? Maybe. There have been rumors circulating for months that Ring may be implementing facial recognition into its security cameras. While Ring hasn’t come out with any new facial recognition features yet, it looks like it may be considering it. New features may also include vehicle license plate reading.
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guest · Sep 1, 2020

Doorbell Cameras Like Ring Give Early Warning of Police Searches, FBI Warned
Two leaked documents show how a monitoring tool used by police has been turned against them
August 31, 2020
https://theintercept.com/2020/08/31/blueleaks-amazon-ring-doorbell-cameras-police/

The rise of the internet-connected home security camera has generally been a boon to police, as owners of these devices can (and frequently do) share footage with cops at the touch of a button. But according to a leaked FBI bulletin, law enforcement has discovered an ironic downside to ubiquitous privatized surveillance: The cameras are alerting residents when police show up to conduct searches.

A November 2019 “technical analysis bulletin” from the FBI provides an overview of “opportunities and challenges” for police from networked security systems like Amazon’s Ring and other “internet of things,” or IoT, devices.
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The downside for police, who have rushed to embrace Ring usage nationwide as the Amazon subsidiary aggressively marketed itself to and sealed partnerships with local departments, is that networked cameras record cops just as easily as the rest of us.
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