Markey welcomes end of Ring-Flock partnership as step against surveillance network
Edward J. MarkeyU.S. senator from Massachusetts, in a written statement from his office
Markey welcomed Amazon Ring's decision to end its planned partnership with Flock Safety, calling it an important step against the expanding surveillance network, and said Amazon must also end facial recognition in Ring doorbells.
“Amazon's decision to abandon its partnership with Flock is an important step in guarding against the ever-expanding network of surveillance technologies in this country.”
Official statement
Where this statement fits
Should Flock-style license-plate surveillance networks exist?
Networked automated license-plate readers record passing vehicles and let agencies search or share travel records across locations. Candidates and officials disagree over whether to prohibit these networks, keep them with legal limits, or defend their use for investigations. This tracker records attributable positions on that choice, including proposals that would affect only public funding or data access.
Source and context
Official statement
About this source
Press release after Ring announced it would end its planned integration with Flock Safety. The integration would have let police departments working with Flock retrieve Ring customer videos. It never launched.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Ring had announced in October 2025 that its Community Requests feature would integrate with Flock Safety, which runs the country's largest license-plate reader network. After backlash to a Super Bowl ad for a related feature, Ring and Flock ended the partnership on Feb. 12, 2026. Markey released the statement the next day.
After the quotation
In the same statement, Markey said the decision is a good first step but not the end, and that Amazon must end facial recognition in its Ring doorbells.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is whether networked license-plate reader systems such as Flock should exist and be used. Markey's statement criticizes the expansion of surveillance networks and praises a company's withdrawal from integration with Flock, but it names no remedy for license-plate networks themselves, so it is placed with critical statements that do not name a remedy.
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Cite this record
- Publisher
- The Dispute Index
- Title
- Markey welcomes end of Ring-Flock partnership as step against surveillance network
- First published
- Last updated
- Permalink
- https://disputeindex.com/events/3510-markey-welcomed-amazon-ring-s-decision-to-end
Last updated marks the most recent saved version of this published statement.
The Dispute Index. "Markey welcomes end of Ring-Flock partnership as step against surveillance network". First published: 2026-09-30. Last updated: 2026-09-30. https://disputeindex.com/events/3510-markey-welcomed-amazon-ring-s-decision-to-end