Strategically, should Amazon’s Ring platform maintain, expand or scale back its contentious partnership with law enforcement given increasing public scrutiny around privacy concerns and ethics?
Strategically, should Amazon’s Ring platform maintain, expand or scale back its contentious partnership with law enforcement given increasing public scrutiny around privacy concerns and ethics?
In 2025, Amazon’s Ring, a smart door notification and security camera system, has been at the center of debate over concerns of privacy, surveillance and public safety. Since 2018, Ring has partnered with thousands of police departments across the United States through its Law Enforcement Neighborhood Portal (LENP), allowing officers to request video footage at crime scenes. The LENP partnership fueled Ring’s rapid growth and presence, but not without pushback, with users raising serious concerns about user content, racial bias and over-surveillance. While some police agencies praised the effectiveness of Ring-produced content, it is unclear whether this actually reduced crime. In this case study, students will step into the role of a member of Ring’s leadership team to assess the growing tension mounted between its original public safety goals and the growing unease around its potential for privacy violations; they will be asked to determine the best strategic course for its partnerships.
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