LAPD Requested Amazon Ring Footage of Black Lives Matter Protests Black Lives Matter protesters stand united as they confront the Los Angeles Police Department on May 27, 2020, in Los Angeles, California, while protesting the police-perpetrated killing of George Floyd in Minnesota. Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images By Along with other civil liberties organizations and activists, EFF has long warned that Amazon Ring and other networked home surveillance devices could be used to monitor political activity and protests. Now we have documented proof that our fears were founded. According to emails obtained by EFF, the LAPD sent requests to Amazon Ring users specifically targeting footage of Black-led protests against police violence that occurred in cities across the country last summer. While it is clear that police departments and federal law enforcement across the country used many different technologies to spy on protests, including aerial surveillance and semi-private camera networks, this is the first documented evidence that a police department specifically requested footage from networked home surveillance devices related to last summer’s political activity.