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Amazon confronts suit over Ring facial recognition software
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A Virginia resident is suing Amazon for privacy violations after the e-commerce company's Ring video doorbell camera allegedly used facial recognition technology to record and store images of his face without his consent.
Key facts
- Ring introduced the "Familiar Faces" feature in September 2025, billing it as a way for owners of its doorbell camera to receive more personalized alerts when someone arrives at their residence
- In 2023, the Federal Trade Commission filed a suit claiming that the online retailer gave its workers and contractors access to personal videos recorded by Ring and failed to protect customer
- Charles Sigwalt, who filed a lawsuit on Monday in Seattle federal court, where Amazon has one of its headquarters, alleges that Ring's "Familiar Faces" feature uses facial-recognition software
- Groups like the nonprofit Electronic Frontier Foundation have pushed back on the feature, claiming it violates people's privacy
Summary
Charles Sigwalt, who filed a lawsuit on Monday in Seattle federal court, where Amazon has one of its headquarters, alleges that Ring's "Familiar Faces" feature uses facial-recognition software to scan anyone who passes by the doorbell camera and categorizes them using artificial intelligence. The system then collects a "face print" that allows it to re-identify the person, according to his complaint, which seeks class-action status. "When plaintiffs and class members entered the homes and businesses of places which had Ring cameras that deployed Familiar Faces, they did not consent to have their privacy rights violated at the entrance way," the suit alleges. Sigwalt alleges Ring collected his facial recognition data without warning while he was visiting friends' and family members' homes.