Installation of Ring doorbells and their legal/privacy concerns

[Stephen Swiatek]

Want to see if anyone has decided to move forward with installation of Ring doorbells at their apartment communities? And if so, did you have to mitigate any legal/privacy concerns for the other residents?

The doorbells/video would be focused on the outside personal entrances of each unit but also the parking lots which would also capture the coming and going of the other residents in the community.

Thank you for  your input!

Stephen

[Ken Breeze]

Great subject @Stephen Swiatek, this is a can of worms or a Pandora's Box privacy topic. Love it ;-) Forgive me for going a bit deeper on this one ;-) but I believe it's relevant and important enough for us to divulge even into a separate reaaaaaal long discussion thread. That said...

For anyone interested, there are huge concerns from the European perspective: devices like Ring are prohibited in the EU. There is no general video or audio surveillance allowed on the continent of 440 million citizens which represent a huge market. And this is just the beginning. There will be a much bigger challenge coming our way with the challenges of surveillance, AI, IoT and privacy in the years to come.

We are all bias towards our agenda, as am I, due to our backgrounds and past experiences. Having grown up as the generation after the so-called "Lost Generation" of post-WWII Germany, one might want to explore why Europeans and other countries have a different stance on privacy issues. 

We've seen the dark side. With huge and unstoppable government and private entities silently conquering and controlling our lives, reading the words I write and as you read them, delivering food and anything to our doorsteps with drones or driverless cars, gathering more and more information on your every secret, we might want to think twice before we continue to let Big Brother (Aldous Huxley anyone) into our backyards, pools, and bedrooms to watch and record our every move - forever. 

There's a great and concerning movie from 1970 named  "Colossus - The Forbidden Project" that foreshadowed what we have let happen all in the name of convenience. But that's more fuel for another thread. This stuff goes real deep. To the core. It's not just a doorbell with a camera.

It's all about perspective -  How about setting up and leading a successful neighborhood watch? You may want to leave some privacy to your tenants - that builds more trust than cameras and spy software. People will do bad - with or without cameras because we are humans. BTW, fake cameras, signs, and decals are a great deterrent, are way cheaper and protect your customer's privacy. 

But there are also alternatives:

• Install a home security system.
• Get a dog.
• Landscape wisely.
• Put up motion detecting outdoor lights.
• Install window and door alarms.
• Put in smarter locks.
• Install fake security cameras.
• Look like you’re home.

The better question is: how does your tenant feel about it? Why not run an online survey via email or SMS, engage your tenants and ask them if they would mind cameras and a ring doorbell system. They may see benefits for themselves: living in a more secure neighborhood or voice concerns and suggestions. Get them on your side, involve them, empower your community and let them decide.