Face Recognition at Homes via Ring Doorbells

VaughanJB

VaughanJB

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Some of you might know "Ring" as a product. Ring is largely a video doorbell. It records the person standing at your doorstep before you answer the door, and owners can talk through it, even is they are remote (such as at work). It seems to have done well in the market place.

Well, with the help of various acquisitions (Ring is essentially owned by Amazon) Ring is about to begin rolling out face recognition tech. The devices will be able to scan faces, and identify people. But how will it know who is who? Easy, it see's a face, and then alerts the Ring owner. The Ring owner can identify the person if they know them, or flag them as not recognized. This information is then uploaded to a database. Voila!

So here we are. For some, this is an amazing piece of tech for home security. For others.... it's an attack on privacy..... pick your poison.

It's worth noting, Amazon have something called a "Community Request", which is essentially how law enforcement gets your Ring data if they decide they want it.
 

I’m absolutely fine with it!

Why on earth should anyone that I don’t know or that hasn’t been invited, which would include delivery people, mailmen, etc…, be at my door unless it’s some sort of an emergency? 🤔

I would be ok with personal body cameras, similar to those worn by police officers and I’m sure that someone is probably working on them.

I can see a big market for them with anxious parents that have school age children, elderly in nursing homes, etc…
 

China demonstrates the future of face recognition. Millions of cameras in public places. If you are an "enemy of the system" (the definition is by the system itself), you can't use your bank account anymore, can't go to certain places, can't enter restaurants and so on.

Yet even in Western countries are people who believe it is for reasons of safety.
 
George1959 said:
China demonstrates the future of face recognition. Millions of cameras in public places. If you are an "enemy of the system" (the definition is by the system itself), you can't use your bank account anymore, can't go to certain places, can't enter restaurants and so on.

Yet even in Western countries are people who believe it is for reasons of safety.
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Indeed. What is interesting to me is that I often see/hear the mantra about how free we are, and how bad Big Brother is. However, the reality is, people seem generally willing to give up their privacy for convenience. Facebook and the so called "overshare" told us this a long time ago. But now it's extended to where we drive, what doors we might knock on, and so on.

It's also worth noting - there is no opt out for the individual here. Devices can be opted out, but not people.
 
Aunt Bea said:
Yes, it’s a step.

A body camera, coupled with facial recognition would go along way towards identifying people that harm a child or defenseless adult.
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Sure. That's equivalent to saying - why not have a camera in every building, in every room, in every public space, so we can know what's going on. I'm not sure how widely your view is held, but perhaps it's the majority.....
 
A camera with facial recognition at the grocery store checkout. It can control what food you purchase.

A limit to how much vehicle fuel you can purchase, preventing you from "overuse" of the prescribed limit, keeping you right where they want you.

The list is long. Freedom is going going gone.
 
GoodEnuff said:
A camera with facial recognition at the grocery store checkout. It can control what food you purchase.

A limit to how much vehicle fuel you can purchase, preventing you from "overuse" of the prescribed limit, keeping you right where they want you.

The list is long. Freedom is going going gone.
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What's interesting (at least to me) is that this isn't the act of nefarious governments - it's big tech. The more these tech companies can do, the less important or relevant governments are.

Of course, governments role here is to legislate, to pass laws that protect us, but sadly the system is corrupted by lobbyists, donations, and the appointment of big tech bosses into key government roles.
 
taliovelez said:
Shomrim Public Safety Patrols self sustaining crime detection systems work and they work well. Any crime detection technology from ring and doorbell cameras to mobile and stationary license plate readers. SPSP has no benefit to the community by sharing private security detection equipment to anybody except by legal petition.
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What? People walking the streets? That's so 1990. :D

(joke!)
 
Aunt Bea said:
You seem desperate to defend your position or perhaps discount my opinions.

It’s okay, we’re both entitled to our beliefs.
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? Why do you think that? A new story just popped up, and I linked to it since you mentioned tracking children. The story talks directly about that, so I thought you might be interested.

I don't have a position on this, particularly. If you want to track your children, then there seems to be multiple ways of doing it, no problem.

How have I discounted your opinion?
 
Sunny said:
About the doorbell recognition, couldn't this just be circumvented by wearing masks?
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Yes... but a mask is a bit obvious. Facial recognition is at the point that a half mask, like we also saw during the height of the pandemic won't block the software to recognize an individual that's already in the system or analyze someone well enough to compile enough data to make a positive comparison of who is not.
But there are also studies out that have looked at how to effectively camouflage oneself in a somewhat more discreet manner.
 
VaughanJB said:
Some of you might know "Ring" as a product. Ring is largely a video doorbell. It records the person standing at your doorstep before you answer the door, and owners can talk through it, even is they are remote (such as at work). It seems to have done well in the market place.

Well, with the help of various acquisitions (Ring is essentially owned by Amazon) Ring is about to begin rolling out face recognition tech. The devices will be able to scan faces, and identify people. But how will it know who is who? Easy, it see's a face, and then alerts the Ring owner. The Ring owner can identify the person if they know them, or flag them as not recognized. This information is then uploaded to a database. Voila!
Click to expand...
Can the ring owner turn the facial recognition feature off and on?
VaughanJB said:
So here we are. For some, this is an amazing piece of tech for home security. For others.... it's an attack on privacy..... pick your poison.

It's worth noting, Amazon have something called a "Community Request", which is essentially how law enforcement gets your Ring data if they decide they want it.
Click to expand...
They need probable cause, but yes, in a criminal investigation after the theft a car parked outside your house, theft of over $500 worth of UPS deliveries, someone breaking into your house, you shooting someone breaking into your house, etc., law enforcement would want that data. And I'd want them to have it. They wouldn't even need a warrant; I'd give it to them.
 
VaughanJB said:
what doors we might knock on, and so on.

It's also worth noting - there is no opt out for the individual here. Devices can be opted out, but not people.
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Watching posts on the local social site, the scummy folks slithering around your house know how to avoid facial recognition.

Even the couriers delivering to our door avoid the camera by keeping their face down or tossing the package. I’m guessing they do this in case they do something wrong and it shows up on the social site.


VaughanJB said:
What's interesting (at least to me) is that this isn't the act of nefarious governments - it's big tech. The more these tech companies can do, the less important or relevant governments are.
Click to expand...
Amazon will now have a database of who everyone is and who knows each other.
 
George1959 said:
China demonstrates the future of face recognition. Millions of cameras in public places. If you are an "enemy of the system" (the definition is by the system itself), you can't use your bank account anymore, can't go to certain places, can't enter restaurants and so on.

Yet even in Western countries are people who believe it is for reasons of safety.
Click to expand...
China is using this technology to control and punish people. Frankly, I find it terrifying.
 
Paco Dennis said:
Wouldn't u feel like a bad parent if you didn't want to track you child, adult or not? The world does not need more bad parents.
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Honestly, no I wouldn't. We all grew up in a world where we weren't personally tracked via devices. This isn't essential, imo. Instead, it speaks more to the paranoid fear people feel in the world today. Children need to grow up, to develop independence. Tracking your children into their teens robs them of that, I think.

Young kids? Sure. But I can see this causing issues too.
 

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