Washington (March 3, 2021) – Senators Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) today queried Amazon about reports that the company has installed surveillance cameras with artificial intelligence capabilities in its delivery vehicles. The cameras, which employ software from Driveri, constantly record video footage when drivers are on their delivery routes and reportedly also capture footage of the roads and sidewalks surrounding the vehicles. In their letter, the Senators pose questions on the safety and well-being of delivery service providers; worker and public surveillance; privacy protections; technology accuracy issues; and data collection, transmission, and storage.

“Although community and automobile safety are of the utmost importance, they must not come at the expense of workers and the publics’ safety, privacy, and wellbeing,” write the lawmakers in their letter to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. “We are concerned that adding further surveillance tools and monitoring could increase dangers on America’s roads, place unsafe pressure on drivers, and infringe on individuals’ privacy rights.”

 

A copy of the letter can be found HERE.

The lawmakers’ ask Amazon for responses to questions that include:

?        Does Amazon intend to install Driveri cameras in all of its delivery vehicles?

?        Can any driver of Amazon’s vehicles opt-out of being recorded by Driveri cameras?

?        Will the monitoring from Driveri be used to determine driver remuneration, promotion, allocation of hours or tasks, or termination?

?        What are the circumstances under which Amazon has or would share Driveri footage with law enforcement entities, including whether Amazon voluntarily complies with law enforcement requests or requires a subpoena or other compulsory process?

?        What is the security protocol that Amazon uses to protect Driveri camera footage?

?        Do the Driveri cameras on Amazon’s vehicles employ facial recognition technology or other biometric recognition technology? If not, will you commit that you will not integrate any biometric recognition technologies into the cameras on Amazon’s vehicles?