© RING
THE POLICE IN JACKSON, Mississippi have asked residents to connect their Ring smart doorbells to its Real Time Crime Center as part of a trial. Amazon, keen to create some space, says it is not involved in any way with the scheme, and the decision to share lies wholly with the Ring owner, so if your civil rights are infringed it’s not its fault. If such permission is granted the police can happily view all the comings and goings at your house, and any other property within view. Normally surveillance cameras are limited to public spaces, and cannot be directed where somebody has a reasonable expectation of privacy, such as being trained on household doors or windows. However, Ring doorbells could be pointed anywhere; by their nature they are on private property, so side-step the normal regulations. So, if a neighbor’s Ring happens to cover your porch too, the authorities have a live feed of the activity at your house as well. The privacy group Electronic Frontier Foundation has claimed that the deal means “our worst fears have been confirmed;” it wants camera systems that are accountable and transparent.