Amazon.com Inc's (AMZN.O) camera unit, Ring, is planning to make police requests for users' video footage through its neighborhood watch app more transparent, the company said on Thursday, a move that follows criticism that its products facilitate surveillance and profiling.
The Amazon logo is seen outside its JFK8 distribution center in Staten Island, New York, U.S. November 25, 2020. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/Filescamera unit, Ring, is planning to make police requests for users’ video footage through its neighborhood watch app more transparent, the company said on Thursday, a move that follows criticism that its products facilitate surveillance and profiling.
Previously, Ring device owners would receive private messages from the app on behalf of police looking for videos. Its devices and its social app, which allows users to share and discuss the surveillance footage captured through their cameras, have been met with concerns from lawmakers and civil rights groups over privacy and racial profiling.
It said no information would be shared with agencies without users choosing to do so and that requests can be issued only by verified agency profiles and that request history will be logged online, so users can see how their police force is using the posts.Crowdsourced crime-tracking app Citizen was recently blasted for putting a $30,000 reward to find a man it wrongly said was an arson suspect. The company has said it regrets the mistake and is working to improve its internal processes.
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