88

Amazon and Flock Safety have ended a partnership that would’ve given law enforcement access to a vast web of Ring cameras.

The decision came after Amazon faced substantial backlash for airing a Super Bowl ad that was meant to be warm and fuzzy, but instead came across as disturbing and dystopian.

The ad begins with a young girl surprised to receive a puppy as a gift. It then warns that 10 million dogs go missing annually. Showing a series of lost dog posters, the ad introduces a new “Search Party” feature for Ring cameras that promises to revolutionize how neighbors come together to locate missing pets.

At that point, the ad takes a “creepy” turn, Sen. Ed Markey (D.-Mass.) told Amazon CEO Andy Jassy in a letter urging changes to enhance privacy at the company.

Illustrating how a single Ring post could use AI to instantly activate searchlights across an entire neighborhood, the ad shocked critics like Markey, who warned that the same technology could easily be used to “surveil and identify humans.”

top 4 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[-] als@lemmy.blahaj.zone 11 points 1 day ago

They've been working with police directly for years, I don't know why people suddenly care

[-] smeg@feddit.uk 5 points 7 hours ago

Because suddenly a large number of people who didn't know now do?

[-] belated_frog_pants@beehaw.org 3 points 6 hours ago

Never a bad time to wake up

[-] p03locke@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 points 17 hours ago

Yeah, this is walking one thing back to get away with their still-bad behaviors.

this post was submitted on 14 Feb 2026
88 points (100.0% liked)

Technology

42227 readers
423 users here now

A nice place to discuss rumors, happenings, innovations, and challenges in the technology sphere. We also welcome discussions on the intersections of technology and society. If it’s technological news or discussion of technology, it probably belongs here.

Remember the overriding ethos on Beehaw: Be(e) Nice. Each user you encounter here is a person, and should be treated with kindness (even if they’re wrong, or use a Linux distro you don’t like). Personal attacks will not be tolerated.

Subcommunities on Beehaw:


This community's icon was made by Aaron Schneider, under the CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0 license.

founded 4 years ago
MODERATORS