LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. — The Gwinnett Police Department is hoping to use the neighborhood watch app provided by home security company Ring to join forces with residents in fighting crime.
The app allows users to get real-time crime and safety alerts from your neighbors and local law enforcement. It also allows users to know when and where crime is happening, and share updates within the app.
Sergeant Jake Smith with the Gwinnett Police Department says they believe it will be just another way for law enforcement to expand their reach in keeping residents safe.
"Anyone can download the neighborhood app, whether you have a ring device or not. While the user can only see what's in their exact area, the police department is able to see all reports being pushed out throughout the county," says Smith.
Smith says that the department wants to make sure residents know that police are not able to see video from a ring device without a user posting it, "we do not have any kind of live streaming capabilities or access to seeing anything without a user posting the video within the app.
Gwinnett Police also want to remind users that reporting criminal activity on the app doesn't mean the user has filed a police report. Smith says that while they encourage residents to use the app to report criminal activity, they also want individuals to file a report with the department at 770-513-5700.
The Neighbors app is free and can be downloaded to a mobile device by visiting download.ring.com/gwinnettcounty or by texting “gwinnett” to 555888.
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