In late 2023, unbeknownst to many users including PAPD, Flock added a new 'Nationwide Lookup' search feature. Using this feature, an out-of-state local law enforcement or federal agency could perform a broad search of data from Flock's entire nationwide network of over 6,000 cameras, including the 20 cameras then-deployed in Palo Alto.
Ring has launched a new tool that can tell you if a video clip captured by its camera has been altered or not. The company says that every video downloaded from Ring starting in December 2025 going forward will come with a digital security seal. "Think of it like the tamper-evident seal on a medicine bottle," it explained. Its new tool, called Ring Verify, can tell you if a video has been altered in any way.
All of the appliances and systems are brand-new: the HVAC, the lighting, the entertainment. Touch screens of various shapes and sizes control this, that, and the other. Rows of programmable buttons sit where traditional light switches would normally be. The kitchen even has outlets designed to rise up from the countertop when you need them, and slide away when you don't.
All smart homes are at risk of being hacked, but it's not a likely event. The type of bad actors that target smart homes and devices, such as security cameras, are opportunistic. They search randomly for easy targets -- they don't tend to choose a particular home to attack and then try to circumvent that specific system.