1984: Thread

[grarpamp]

NSA Awards TOP-SECRET $10 Billion Contract To Amazon

Ring Cameras Amassing Info On Users...And Their Neighbors

https://www.nextgov.com/emerging-tech/2022/04/nsa-re-awards-secret-10-billion-contract-amazon/366184/

https://assets.ctfassets.net/a3peezndovsu/Kv9BIzU9CMClPcpktDnnH/b652eb950793816cb11aa2bcd58454ba/Ring_Information_Request_Report_H1_22.pdf
https://www.wired.com/story/ring-doorbell-camera-amazon-privacy/
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-51709247

Ring Cameras Amassing Info On Users...And Their Neighbors

About 18% of Americans now own a video doorbell. That means a
significant and growing slice of American neighborhoods are under a
form of intermittent surveillance. If the surveillance video and
associated data were the exclusive property of individual homeowners,
it might not be of much concern.

However, that's not the case. For example, Ring, the company behind
the top-selling brand, maintains a vast database on its users and
their cameras. Ring is an Amazon subsidiary, thanks to the tech
giant's 2018 purchase of the company for over $1 billion.

Ring says it doesn't sell its customers data, but sometimes it gives
it away for free -- to the police. In the first half of 2022 alone,
Ring fielded more than 3,500 requests from law enforcement agencies.

Ring keeps plenty of info that you'd expect them to have. According to
Wired magazine:

    Ring gets your name, phone number, email and postal address, and
any other information you provide to it—such as payment information or
your social media handles if you link your Ring account to Facebook,
for instance. The company also gets information about your Wi-Fi
network and its signal strength, and it knows you named your camera
“Secret CIA Watchpoint,” as well as all the other technical changes
you make to your cameras or doorbells.

But that's not all. In 2020, the BBC reported that Ring keeps data on
every motion detected by its cameras, including the exact time "down
to the millisecond." The event database also tracks doorbell rings --
and how many rings -- as well as on-demand actions by the Ring
doorbell's owner, such as requesting live video or speaking through
the speaker.
A look at one user's Ring event database (via BBC)

BBC also found Ring's database tracked interactions with the company's
apps -- every time it's opened, various types of screen-taps, and
instances where the owner zoomed in on video footage. Over time,
scrutiny of all this data can provide insights into whether you're
home or not.

If you subscribe to the Ring Protect Plan -- which archives 6 months
of video and audio -- Ring may even keep the video you've personally
deleted, according to a Wired analysis of the company's privacy
policy.

Maybe you've opted against buying a Ring doorbell out of privacy
concerns. That's fine, but don't forget that your neighbor's Ring
camera may be watching you -- or even listening to you. Tests have
found Ring cameras can record audio from 20 feet away. If you're
strolling by a Ring-equipped house and talking to someone, you and
your conversation could be in Ring's database. The same is true if
you're on your own property and you're close enough to a neighbor's
camera and microphone.

This isn't just a question of whether you trust Amazon and Ring not to
misuse your video, audio and associated data. There's always the
chance that your info could be hacked by common criminals -- or the
ones who work for the government.

Speaking of the latter, earlier this year, Amazon was awarded a $10
billion renewal of a secret NSA contract.