Ring calls off partnership with police surveillance supplier Flock Security

Ring has canceled its partnership with Flock Security, after receiving backlash for operating a Tremendous Bowl advert touting its Search Social gathering characteristic. When you’ll recall, Ring revealed again in October 2025 that it was entering a partnership with the surveillance firm, which might make it potential for regulation enforcement to ask good doorbell homeowners for movies captured by their units. In its announcement, the corporate mentioned that the “deliberate Flock Security integration would require considerably extra time and assets than anticipated.” The choice to name off the partnership was mutual, Ring added, and Flock Security’s integration was by no means launched. Apparently, no Ring buyer footage was ever despatched to Flock.

Below the partnership, regulation enforcement businesses utilizing Flock’s Nova platform or FlockOS would have been ready to make use of Ring’s Group Requests to ask for doorbell movies from customers. They’d have been requested to specify the placement and timeframe of the incident, in addition to present a singular investigation code and the main points about what’s being investigated. Their requests would then be forwarded to related customers, who might select to share footage from their doorbell. Ring mentioned the entire course of would have been nameless and optionally available.

Ring was recognized to have shared security cam videos to regulation enforcement with out a courtroom order or the gadget proprietor’s consent at the least 11 occasions prior to now. In 2024, nevertheless, it appeared to have walked back its police-friendly stance and mentioned that it will cease sharing movies with the police with out a warrant. This alliance with Flock would have marked a return to police collaboration after the corporate distanced itself from regulation enforcement.

Whereas Ring’s official motive was that the Flock partnership would wish extra assets than anticipated, it’s price noting that the corporate lately obtained flak for its Tremendous Bowl Search Social gathering advert. Ring touted it as a option to discover misplaced canine through the use of its cameras’ AI to establish pets operating throughout their visual view after which pooling feeds collectively to establish lacking pets. Whereas Search Social gathering isn’t new and was introduced final 12 months, the advert sparked considerations about surveillance and the way the tech might be misused, main customers to disable the characteristic for his or her cameras altogether.