After a judge ruled that a man’s camera doorbell breached data protection rules, owners of Ring devices are on alert.
Yesterday a man was ordered to pay £100,000 to his neighbour after she claimed she was under "continuous visual surveillance".
Ring doorbells are popular smart devices that allow users to see what’s happening on their doorstep electronically.
The devices detect motion and record video as well as audio.
Amazon, which sells Ring doorbells, has advised Ring owners to make clear on their property that these devices are being used.
Meanwhile, Ring "strongly encouraged" customers to enable a privacy setting to comply with privacy laws.
The 'Privacy Zone' setting limits Ring doorbells to oversee a limited area.
Ring said in a statement: "We strongly encourage our customers to respect their neighbours’ privacy and comply with any applicable laws when using their Ring device.
"We’ve put features in place across all our devices to ensure privacy, security, and user control remain front and centre – including customisable Privacy Zones to block out "off-limit" areas, Motion Zones to control the areas customers want their Ring device to detect motion and Audio Toggle to turn audio on and off."
Ring doorbells allow users to speak through the device as well as view the goings-on outside their door.
Judge Mellisa Clarke said the defendant and owner of the Ring doorbell, Jon Woodward, has breached the Data Protection Act 2018 and UK GDPR.
The judge said the photographs and video captured on Ring were the personal data of Mr Woodward's neighbour.
