Amazon Ring’s Super Bowl ad sparks backlash amid fears of mass surveillance
The Verge • • business
Key Points:
- Ring's new Search Party feature, showcased in a Super Bowl ad, uses AI-powered cameras to locate lost dogs but has sparked privacy concerns about potential human surveillance.
- Critics, including Sen. Ed Markey and privacy experts, worry the technology could evolve into mass surveillance tools due to Ring's partnerships with law enforcement and surveillance firms like Flock Safety.
- Ring asserts that Search Party only identifies dogs and is separate from its opt-in Familiar Faces facial recognition feature, emphasizing built-in privacy safeguards and no current capability to search for humans.
- Despite company assurances, concerns remain about data sharing with law enforcement and the potential for expanded surveillance, given Ring’s history and AI ambitions to reduce crime through widespread camera use.
- The controversy highlights
