Flock Safety and Ring partnership to let customers share video with law enforcement

ATLANTA — Flock Safety and Ring have announced that Flock Safety will integrate with Ring’s Community Requests to give customers the option to share video footage with local public safety agencies that use Flock software to investigate active cases.

The partnership comes on the heels of recent efforts by Flock Safety to expand its influence in the public safety sector with its Alpha platform Drone as First Responder (DFR) offering.

Through Ring’s Community Requests feature and Flock software, Ring customers can choose to assist or ignore these requests from local public safety agencies according to the companies.

When a local public safety officer is investigating a case, they can use Flock’s software to send a direct post in the Ring Neighbors app with details about the investigation, and request voluntary assistance. Each Community Request must include the specific location and timeframe of the incident, a unique investigation code, and details about what is being investigated. Ring customers can anonymously view the request, and then choose if they want to share relevant footage or ignore the request. Any footage a Ring customer chooses to submit will be securely packaged by Flock and shared directly with the requesting local public safety agency through the FlockOS or Flock Nova platform.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Ring to make the process of requesting more information from the community faster, more efficient, and fully auditable, all while respecting individual privacy,” said Garrett Langley, CEO and Founder of Flock Safety. “With Community Requests, community members and public safety agencies can increase transparency with simple, secure ways of looking out for one another, leading to safety outcomes that help the entire community thrive.” 

According to Flock Safety, all actions within Flock Nova and FlockOS are permanently recorded in a comprehensive CJIS-compliant audit trail for unalterable custody tracking, and all Community Requests will be publicly logged in Ring Neighbors.

"Ring's mission of making neighborhoods safer is rooted in the power of community collaboration. Ring cameras and the Neighbors app have become important tools for neighborhood safety,” said Jamie Siminoff, former CEO and chief inventor of Ring. “This integration with Flock Safety to expand Community Requests empowers even more communities who want to help.”

Flock Safety has ruffled feathers with privacy advocates this year with the revelation that it had allowed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to informally conduct immigration related searches using the company’s ALPR system. Speaking with SSN at that time, Flock Safety’s Communications Director Holly Beilin said that, “Flock supports democratically-authorized governing bodies to determine what public safety means for their community.”

The expansion of Ring Community Requests to Flock Nova and FlockOS will reportedly take place in the coming months.