Virginia Resident Sues Amazon Over ‘Familiar Faces’ Feature

A Virginia resident has filed a lawsuit against Amazon, claiming that the company’s Ring video doorbell camera violated his privacy through the use of facial recognition technology.

Charles Sigwalt initiated legal action on Monday in Seattle federal court, stating that the ‘Familiar Faces’ feature utilizes facial recognition software to scan individuals passing by the camera. Allegedly, this software categorizes people using artificial intelligence, and collects a ‘face print’ to re-identify individuals.

The lawsuit seeks class-action status, with Sigwalt asserting that visitors to homes equipped with Ring cameras were unaware of their privacy rights being compromised. He claims that Ring collected his facial recognition data without consent during visits to friends’ and family members’ residences and suggests Amazon continues to store this data.

Amazon has not commented on the lawsuit.

‘Familiar Faces’ Feature Criticism

Ring introduced the ‘Familiar Faces’ feature in September 2025 to provide more personalized alerts to users. Instead of generic notifications like ‘Person at Front Door,’ users might receive specific notifications, such as ‘John at Front Door.’

According to Ring, users can activate or deactivate this feature at any time. However, groups such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation have criticized it, arguing that it poses privacy concerns and potential mass surveillance risks.

Senator Edward Markey from Massachusetts has also expressed concern, highlighting the unauthorized collection of biometric data by this technology.

Previous Ring Litigation

Amazon has faced previous legal challenges over its Ring product. In 2023, the Federal Trade Commission sued Amazon for allegedly allowing employees and contractors access to personal Ring-recorded videos, resulting in security breaches. Amazon settled the suit for $5.8 million.

Amazon recently ended a partnership with Flock Safety, a security technology company, following backlash from a Ring Super Bowl commercial that raised surveillance concerns.

Amazon acquired Ring in 2018 for $1 billion.