Amazon and Law Enforcement: Irrelevant or Something Else?
August 1, 2019
I have given lectures about Amazon’s policeware initiative. The information about this facet of the online bookstore’s work has attracted little attention. Rumor has it that one big time reporter tried to ask questions about Ring doorbells and related technologies and found a “No Entry” sign posted.
DarkCyber’s approach is to rely on real news stories. It appears that the Bezos bulldozer has revved its engine with regard to the role of the Ring doorbell and a handful of law enforcement entities. (Yes, DarkCyber perceives an alleged 200 tie ups as a handful. We are talking about the Bezos bulldozer’s pulling capacity. Think in terms of larger numbers. Think Five Eyes. Think financial regulators around the world.)
If the information in Ars Technica is accurate, DarkCyber learned:
Amazon reportedly provides marketing scripts to more than 200 police partners.
If true, this is indeed interesting. LE and intel professionals are not too keen on publicity. Amazon, a master of financial reporting to the SEC, is not like a Hollywood producer using communications to make a dead duck fly.
The write up “Amazon Writes Scripts for for Cops to Sling Ring Home Cameras, Report Says” cites another publication which reproduces an allegedly “real” email. The email includes this text:
Hi, all,
Appreciate your patience here as we are currently hashing out some across the board approaches for these exact scenarios. Given that this has been in the works for quite some time and the circumstances you describe, can we agree on the following timeline of events as a compromise:
Wed, June 5th, Boca PD Onboarding to Neighbors Portal (PS can use portal by commenting and engaging, no external promotion or discussion of portal beyond that)
Thurs, June 6th: Boca Foundation Subsidy Launch Event
Mon, June 24th: Earliest day for any Boca PD neighbors Portal external, public facing announcement (to be coordinated with Ring and reviewed in advance to ensure appropriate messaging and not conflated with Subsidy program)
Please, let us know if this timeline is acceptable! This will allow PD to become familiar and state using portal while given the subsidy program full public attention and greatest chance for success. While sticking with our strict policy of not conjoining the two in practice or in presentation.
This text comes from Engadget.
DarkCyber’s attempt to make sense of this alleged Amazon email to someone in the Boca PD is hypothetical. Here’s what the research team derived from the text of the allegedly “real” email, our open source information about Amazon policeware, and suppositions and rumors floated at conferences.
First, Amazon is providing funds to jump start the “program.” This marketing method is just like the LexisNexis “make the legal information available to law school students.” The goal is to condition young attorneys to use the for fee LexisNexis when they get an job in a law firm, government agency, or non profit. The subsidy essential makes it possible for cash strapped police departments to get access to technology and data. The approach may have some other benefits like good PR for Amazon, police departments, and city officials.
Second, the approach appears to minimize the law enforcement value of the Ring video doorbell to law enforcement. That’s okay, but Amazon appears to view the Ring project as a way to control information flows and decision making within “independent” law enforcement entities. This strikes DarkCyber as a variation of the methods spelled out in the classic “How to Sell Anything to Anybody.” Getting the customer to say “yes” or do what the sales person wants is one theme of this decades old classic.
Third, Amazon is not “connecting the dots” for its policeware system. (If you want a for fee webinar for your team about Amazon policeware, write us at darkcyber333 at yandex dot com.) A key part of the Amazon way to present discrete services as islands which are loosely coupled. In order to connect these islands, one has to be [a] told about the connections by Amazon, [b] take Amazon AWS training and become Amazon certified, [c] grunt around for open source information which is written to make the larger connections in the Amazon policeware system difficult to discern.
DarkCyber finds the Ars Technica write up, the allegedly “real” memo from Amazon to a police department, and the lack of understanding by many Amazon observers interesting.
Amazon sells cameras, dog food, and T shirts, right?
Absolutely, but it also is working overtime to create an Oracle Axiom dominator plus a few other minor things. Definitely “minor.”
Stephen E Arnold, August 1, 2019
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