PREVIEW

On January 24, Ring announced plans in a blog post to discontinue its 'Request for Assistance' tool. NBC reports that Amazon's Ring will no longer allow law enforcement to request a user's doorbell video footage in its neighborhood watch app. The app previously allowed police to submit requests for users' footage through a publicly accessible post in the Neighbors app. "Public safety agencies like fire and police departments can still use the Neighbors app to share helpful safety tips, updates, and community events." "They will no longer be able to use the RFA tool to request and receive video in the app." Eric Kuhn, Head of Neighbors, via NBC. In 2021, Ring made police requests for user footage public in the Neighbors app. Prior to that decision, police could message users privately to request access to their smart doorbell camera footage. Law enforcement will still be able to gain access to footage through search warrants and subpoenas. NBC reports that Ring has prompted concerns over privacy due to controversial deals with hundreds of police departments across the U.S. Meanwhile, the company's Neighbors app has allegedly heightened the risk of racial profiling and turned people's neighbors into informants.

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