Ring made a joint decision with Flock Safety to cancel their planned partnership, citing the need for more time and resources. This move comes amidst increasing scrutiny of home security cameras being used for surveillance purposes by law enforcement and neighborhood monitoring. The integration never launched, and no customer videos were shared.
Following the backlash from Ring’s Super Bowl ad featuring its AI-powered Search Party feature, concerns have been raised about the potential use of home security cameras for surveillance. Despite Ring’s reassurances about user control over sharing footage, critics remain wary. The canceled Flock partnership, although not directly related to the Search Party feature, was seen as evidence of Ring’s collaborations with law enforcement.
The partnership with Flock Safety, announced in October, was aimed at allowing local law enforcement agencies to request footage from Ring camera owners through the Neighbors app during active investigations. Ring users had the option to share video or ignore the request. However, civil liberties groups raised concerns about potential access to footage by federal agencies, given Flock’s widespread use by police departments.
Ring clarified that it has no partnership with ICE and does not share video with the agency. The Community Requests feature, which allows law enforcement to request footage from nearby Ring users voluntarily, remains active. Users can choose to share footage or decline the request as they see fit.
Rival company Nest, owned by Google, has also faced scrutiny in the Nancy Guthrie disappearance case, where investigators recovered video from a Nest doorbell camera with Google’s assistance. Ring founder Jamie Siminoff highlighted the privacy protection measures in place for Ring users, emphasizing the voluntary nature of sharing footage with law enforcement through Community Requests.
Siminoff defended Ring’s Search Party feature, emphasizing its privacy-first design and comparing it to finding a lost dog in one’s backyard. He mentioned that the system has aided investigations, such as a shooting near Brown University in December, and hinted at future features to come.
