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Ring, the Amazon-owned home security company, has partnered with Flock, a company specializing in AI-powered surveillance cameras. This integration, operating under Ring’s Community Request program, allows law enforcement agencies utilizing Flock’s platforms, Nova or FlockOS, to request video footage from Ring users through the Neighbors app. The partnership has immediately ignited concerns about privacy and data security, particularly given Flock’s history of providing data access to agencies such as the Secret Service, the Navy, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Law enforcement requests must include specific crime details and a unique investigation code. Ring users retain the ability to opt out of the Community Request program. Ring assures users that law enforcement agencies will not have visibility into which users receive or decline requests. Ring’s data-sharing practices with law enforcement, sometimes without warrants, have been subject to past criticism. Although Ring discontinued its Request for Assistance feature earlier this year, it continues to reserve the right to share data in emergency situations. This practice mirrors that of Google, which also grants access to Nest data under similar circumstances.