The Surveillance State Always Rings Twice - Threatwire CrossPost (Patreon)

by Shannon Morse, ThreatWire 

Helpful neighborhood watch? Or surveillance state network? Earlier this year, Ring, the Amazon owned company that makes smart doorbells and cameras, posted about their Neighbors app, which is used to upload fun videos from their home security technology. It’s also used to report suspected crimes, such as people breaking into cars in the driveway of a home, stealing packages off the front porch, or wandering into the backyard and “looking suspicious”. Users have full control over which videos they choose to upload to the Neighbors app, and Ring says the company does not view or share videos not posted in the app without user consent. However, Ring employees at their satellite office in Ukraine were able to watch videos through an administrative web portal last year. Ring says this app is to create better and safer communities and their sole purpose is to “make safer neighborhoods for our families to live in.”

Police are also using this app to find criminals. Law enforcement can use the Neighbors app to see the same interface as users, but can view all public posts within their jurisdiction, and they can write their own posts as well. Law enforcement can also request videos from within a jurisdiction from Ring. Ring then sends that request to the users. Users still have the right not to disclose video details to the police, although law enforcement could file a warrant for data, at which time they could gain access.

Many are worried about how Ring is conducting business with police, though. Hampton, Virginia received 15 free Ring cameras after that jurisdiction partnered with the company. Others in Indiana, New Jersey, and California offer discounts of up to $125 off Ring cameras, with discounts coming from state funds (i.e. taxpayer money). One city, Hammond, Indiana, received more than $37k to subsidize Ring cameras - half of that subsidy came from Ring, the other from the city. The idea of a discounted camera, with a free service or one that costs as little as $3 per month to store videos, is enticing, especially from the opinion of protecting your home. Amazon’s Ring is making that money back in droves when users sign up for the subscription. Even if a discounted or free camera isn’t available, many users still hand over footage of thefts or suspected crimes willingly to police, even without the app. 

But some of these jurisdictions are requiring end users to turn over any footage from said devices when requested, even though that isn’t in line with Ring’s terms of service. And some of these townships are so covered with Ring devices that just stepping out your front door would put you on video. At what point does a smart security system of cameras become a surveillance state? Since users are the first point of determination to opt to share videos, could you be considered guilty in the public eye even before proving it wrong? Generally, law enforcement have to write a plan, budget, get approval through the city government, and debate planned surveillance - and that’s for surveillance that is just seen by police (hopefully). In the case of Ring, if a user deems it so, anyone can see their footage.

Police are able to use this footage with their own facial recognition technology or license plate readers to further find suspected criminals, even while Ring faces publish backlash for the consideration of adding facial recognition to their own devices.

Consider another vertical: that many of these videos are being used to advertise Ring doorbells and cameras on social media via paid posts. Ring uses videos of suspected criminals in sponsored posts aimed at specific neighborhoods. To catch a criminal? To sell their products? Both? They don’t anonymize the people on camera, so in the public eye: they are criminals. The user who recorded the video is in charge of consenting, not the police or the person caught on camera. 

At what point does it become too much? While this is more of an opinion piece than news, I felt it worthy to share what’s going on and raise some concerns. What do you think? Let me know.