How to Ding, Dong, Ditch Ring’s surveillance network

There are lots of options for video doorbells that store footage locally — including these from Eufy, Reolink, SwitchBot, Tapo, and Aqara. | Photo by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge Recently, Ring ran a Super Bowl ad for its Search Party feature showing how it uses AI to scan footage from Ring cameras and video doorbells to help find lost dogs. It sounds neighborly — until you consider that the same system could theoretically search footage for anything or anyone .  Combined with longstanding concerns around Ring’s ties to law enforcement — including a recent proposed integration with law enforcement technology company Flock Safety — the ad has prompted some users to look for alternatives to Ring. If you are uncomfortable continuing to use your Ring cameras and are wondering what to do, we’ve rounded up all your options: From how to lock down your Ring hardware if you don’t want to or can’t swap it out, to doorbell cameras that don’t rely on cloud-processing — including those that store footage locally. Why are people looking to ditch Ring? The core concern is that Ring footage is processed and stored in the cloud. While Ring encrypts videos in transit and at rest, the company can access footage while it’s processed for features such as AI-powered video descriptions , video search , and Search Party .  While Ring has said that it does not share data or video footage with ICE or any federal law enforcement agencies, and that only its users can share their footage with local law enforcement, many people are concerned about what might happen if Ring changes its policies.  Ring maintains that it is not conducting mass surveillance. However, Ring’s founder and CEO Jamie Siminoff continues to be vocal in his belief that more cameras and more AI can help solve crime. He was the one who brought back video sharing with law enforcement after his predecessor ended the company’s prior police-sharing feature . Ring — lik