SAN DIEGO — Do you or your neighbors have a Ring security doorbell?
Police in your neighborhood could be monitoring the videos you share. Several agencies across the county are now using the doorbell’s app to watch and request video that could aid their investigations, but some are calling it an invasion of privacy.
Chula Vista is one of the five departments in San Diego County that is partnering with Ring in a push-pull format. That means users can either push video they want police to see, or officers can solicit users within a set area to check their cameras for video that could help.
“We basically went into this partnership because we wanted to use the Ring app as an extension of a neighborhood watch program. It is totally voluntary. If they want to send it to us, they can, but they're under no obligation to do so,” said Lt. Dan Peak.
Lt. Peak stresses the app is not a blank check for them to see everything any time, only what users want to share.
“Unless it's posted there the police department is not able to see it,” he said.
Still, associate professor of sociology Cid Martinez cautions users to think about what they are sharing.
“Even though they're signing a consent, I am not sure if they fully understand how much of their constitutional rights they're waiving,” said Professor Martinez.
Martinez also said he sees a potential problem for law enforcement as many departments struggle with implicit bias in some communities.
“This type of tech could be another tool used in that over policing in neighborhoods perceived to be dangerous based on the racial profiling of population,” said Professor Martinez.
While he called the cameras an invaluable tool, Martinez also wants the community to have a say.
Law enforcement will not be able to just tap into any camera video, but what is shared will be stored.