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Amazon's Ring could tighten privacy after accusations it shares data with Facebook

Ring says its Control Center already handles these security concerns.

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Corinne Reichert Senior Writer
Corinne Reichert (she/her) grew up in Sydney, Australia and moved to California in 2019. She holds degrees in law and communications, and currently writes news, analysis and features for CNET across the topics of electric vehicles, broadband networks, mobile devices, big tech, artificial intelligence, home technology and entertainment. In her spare time, she watches soccer games and F1 races, and goes to Disneyland as often as possible.
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Ring's Control Center allows customers to manage their privacy and security settings.

 Chris Monroe/CNET

Ring could further change its privacy settings after concerns arose that it shares customer data with Facebook and Google , CNET sister site CBS News reported Friday. The smart video doorbell , which Amazon has been using to help police build a surveillance network, might soon allow customers to block Ring from sharing "most" of their information.

It follows an Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) study in January that found Ring sends info to Facebook even if you don't have an account, including "time zone, device model, language preferences, screen resolution, and a unique identifier." 

Ring told CBS News that "where applicable," customers will be able to opt out of sharing agreements. The change will come out soon, according to CBS MoneyWatch.

According to Ring, however, there is no further update as of now to its Control Center, which was introduced last month during CES 2020 to help customers manage their  privacy  and security settings, and opt out of police video requests. The company will provide an update when it does have more news on this, a spokesperson for Ring told CNET Friday afternoon.

The launch of Control Center followed concerns about Ring allowing police to access video doorbell footage without customer consent, and police being able to see who has a Ring doorbell installed.

Originally published Feb. 14, 12:40 p.m. PT.
Update, 12:52 p.m.: Adds comment from Ring.

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