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Comment by burger_moon | Hacker News Reader

I have a few coworkers who recently got Ring devices. Now I see them constantly checking their phones and watching the security footage. The level of paranoia this device creates is pretty remarkable. These are rich tech workers living in low crime neighborhoods too.

Having a security camera isn't a bad idea at all, but one that gets you to check it constantly like it's instagram can't be healthy.

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A good friend got one. Checks it constantly. He has slipped down the slope of constant surveillance. Cell phone buzzes while we are out..."let's see who is visiting the wife?" Let's listen in on how she's interacting with the kids as they play in the driveway.

It makes me uneasy and any suggestions I have made jokingly or seriously about it being weird are brushed off. I genuinely feel it straining our relationship as he turns into this other person every time he checks in on what's happening.

That is gross. It is the inflexible that shape society. This is why we have overly clean things, scents everywhere and a myriad of disposable one time use items.

As a counterpoint, I live in Arizona (hardly rich tech workers living in my neighborhood, excluding me). Tons of people here have them and almost every instance is either just a delivery person OR literally someone trying to steal crap from their porch etc.

> OR literally someone trying to steal crap from their porch etc.

To significantly reduce the chance of package theft, I got a simple outdoor cabinet (no lock) and put up a sign on my door asking deliverymen to place packages in it. They do it 95% of the time now, so it's very difficult for a potential package thief to know if there's anything to steal at my door.

Specifically, I got one of these and spray-painted it to match my house:

https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/products/storage-furniture/outdoo...

>OR literally someone trying to steal crap from their porch etc.

On one border you have CA (which basically laughs at the idea of prosecuting people for property crime), on another you have Mexico (a place to liquidate stolen goods). AZ is screwed from a property crime perspective.

That paranoia dies down quickly once you realize how boring your neighborhood is. At least it did for me. In fact, I recently had an item stolen, and didn't even know it until my neighbor told me about a strange man in her backyard (I had missed the notification entirely).

I do agree with the article, however. It makes sense that a constant drip-feed of local crime news can have a detrimental effect on perceived security and danger.

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