Ring ends 'Request for Assistance' feature allowing police to request user footage

Amazon’s Ring announced it would discontinue its “Request for Assistance” (RFA) tool, which had allowed police departments and public safety agencies to request video footage from doorbell camera owners through the Neighbors app. The policy change, effective immediately, marked a significant retreat from Ring’s controversial police partnership program that had facilitated over 20,000 warrantless footage requests in 2020 alone.

End of Facilitated Police Requests

Under the discontinued system, law enforcement agencies with Ring partnerships could post public requests in the Neighbors app asking users in specific geographic areas to share footage from particular timeframes. Ring provided the platform and infrastructure that made these bulk requests efficient and scalable, effectively serving as an intermediary for warrantless surveillance. The Electronic Frontier Foundation characterized the change as Ring “hopefully will altogether be out of the business of platforming casual and warrantless police requests” for footage.

What Police Access Remains

While Ring ended the Request for Assistance feature, significant police access to Ring footage continues. Law enforcement agencies can still make public posts on the Neighbors app sharing safety information and community updates. More importantly, police retain the ability to obtain Ring footage through traditional legal channels: search warrants, subpoenas, and court orders. Ring also maintains its “emergency” exception allowing the company to provide footage to police without warrants or user consent in situations Ring determines involve “imminent danger of death or serious physical injury.”

No Explanation Provided

Ring did not provide a reason for discontinuing the Request for Assistance tool, leaving unclear whether the decision stemmed from the $5.8 million FTC settlement finalized eight months earlier, ongoing criticism from civil liberties advocates, declining police use of the feature, or strategic considerations around the company’s surveillance business model. The lack of explanation fueled speculation about whether Ring was genuinely reforming its police collaboration practices or simply restructuring how it facilitates law enforcement access to its massive private surveillance network.