Amazon's Ring Police Portal For Mass Surveillance

Re:Amazon's Ring Police Portal For Mass Surveillance by ndespres on Tuesday October 16, 2018 @01:54PM (#18231518)

I can not imagine developing this and thinking that it is Good. This type of product and platform completely ignores the reality of how it will be used and how police behave in American society.

In the demo video, their example has someone sharing a photo of "suspicious people" walking around outside their house, and has neighbors commenting "oh no!" on it. Now the police are alerted to this "crime" which may not even be a crime. Anyone who has an account on NextDoor knows the hysteria around a minor event like a car that someone doesn't recognize being in the neighborhood.

The next step is police or homeowner arresting or shooting someone captured on video and posted to this social feed as having committed a crime.

The developers, marketers, SV investors, etc who promote this type of surveillance as a good idea need a course in ethics and reality.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Amazon's Ring Police Portal For Mass Surveillance by reaperducer on Tuesday October 16, 2018 @05:02PM (#18233236)

Anyone who has an account on NextDoor knows the hysteria around a minor event like a car that someone doesn't recognize being in the neighborhood.

Happened to me. I saw myself in a Nextdoor video as someone "suspicious," followed pleas from the homeowner and a chorus of cabbageheads for more videos from anyone living nearby so they could identify the car I drive.

That's what I get for walking through a public park that backs into a group of homes two hours before closing time.

The level of paranoia in the suburbs is just off the charts. I can't wait until I can move back to a city like New York or Chicago or Houston, where I can be safe from my neighbors, and only have to worry about the criminals.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Amazon's Ring Police Portal For Mass Surveillance by ringolet on Wednesday October 17, 2018 @12:46PM (#18240899)

Bad news, then. I live in the city of Los Angeles, and our NextDoor is just as bad.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Amazon's Ring Police Portal For Mass Surveillance by logfromblammo on Tuesday October 16, 2018 @03:11PM (#18232250)

This would make it so much easier for the neighborhood nosybody to report dark people walking around in a light people neighborhood. See something racial; say something racist.

The television commercials for Ring are ridiculous. They act like it's a magical talisman against criminals, who scuttle away like cockroaches under its wary gaze.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Amazon's Ring Police Portal For Mass Surveillance by sbr464 on Tuesday October 16, 2018 @03:50PM (#18232599)

I agree completely. It also feel's like the worst part of dystopian by integrating a somewhat clean/modern UI, almost like an SNL commercial for a SaaS platform.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Amazon's Ring Police Portal For Mass Surveillance by qmr on Tuesday October 16, 2018 @09:55PM (#18235240)

I can't stand nextdoor. Bunch of idiots scared of their own shadow sharing photos and videos of "suspicious" people and dumbasses asking about "gunshots" any time a car backfires or a firecracker is set off.

Ridiculous.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Amazon's Ring Police Portal For Mass Surveillance by ndespres on Wednesday October 17, 2018 @07:28AM (#18237993)

Now imagine someone's Ring camera takes a snapshot of the person with the backfiring car and sends it to the police as having fired a gun! Who would build this?

[ Parent | on HN ]