LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Ring will no longer allow police departments to directly request doorbell camera footage from users, but local law enforcement agencies don't expect the change to interfere with investigations.
The Amazon-owned company announced the change last week. Previously, public safety agencies were able to request footage from neighbors using Ring's 'Neighbors' app. Now, agencies will need to collect footage through other means.
The Lexington Police Department said it does not believe the change will have a negative impact. Although the agency said it utilizes the Neighbors app, it has invested in a different system in recent months.
The city's Real-Time Intelligence Center (RTIC) has a citywide camera registry known as "Connect Lexington".
The system allows people to voluntarily join a network of security cameras that police believe will help gather evidence more efficiently.
Residents and business owners can register their cameras with the city, letting them know where cameras may assist in investigations. Police can then notify the camera owner that their video may be helpful evidence.
They can also take it a step further by providing direct access to a live feed of their cameras.
"What this does is allows our investigators and our officers to have a very real-time, up-to-date information source," said Lexington Police Commander Matthew Greathouse.
Since the program launched last summer, over 900 cameras have been registered and over 600 are now "integrated", or directly accessible by Lexington public safety agencies.
When asked about the Ring policy changes, multiple other police agencies, including Richmond, London and Frankfort, also said investigations will likely be minimally affected.
"This shouldn't impact us too much. Should we encounter a situation where we need footage we will either request it directly from the Ring owner or seek to obtain a search warrant," said a spokesperson for the London Police Department.
Ring did not provide an explanation for the policy change in its blog post.
To learn more about the Connect Lexington system and how to join, you can visit the program's website.
