Leaked Email Suggests Ring Plans To Expand 'Search Party' Surveillance Beyond Dogs

Source: Slashdot

Background

Ring’s AI‑powered Search Party feature links neighborhood cameras into a networked surveillance system originally marketed for locating lost dogs.

Internal Email

An internal email from founder Jamie Siminoff, obtained by 404 Media, reveals that the feature was never intended to stop at pets. In early October, shortly after the feature launched, Siminoff told employees that Search Party was introduced “first for finding dogs” but that the technology would eventually help “zero out crime in neighborhoods.”

The feature, which is enabled by default, drew intense backlash after Ring promoted it in a Super Bowl advertisement.

Additional AI Features

• Familiar Faces – a facial‑recognition tool that identifies friends and family on a user’s camera.
• Fire Watch – an AI‑based fire‑alert system.

Company Response

A Ring spokesperson told the publication that Search Party does not process human biometrics or track people.