Earlier this 12 months, Anker, the Chinese language firm that makes Eufy safety cameras, supplied its customers cash in change for movies of package deal and automobile thefts. 

The favored internet-connected safety digital camera maker stated it could pay its prospects $2 per video to coach its AI programs to assist higher detect thieves who steal automobiles and packages.  

“To make sure we’ve got sufficient knowledge, we’re searching for movies of each actual and staged occasions, to assist practice the Al what to be looking out for,” the corporate wrote on its web site.  

“You may even create occasions by pretending to be a thief and donate these occasions,” the web site reads. “You may full this rapidly. Perhaps one act will be captured by your two outside cameras concurrently, making it environment friendly and straightforward. In the event you additionally stage a automobile door theft, you would possibly earn $80.” 

Eufy additionally wrote that “the info collected from these staged occasions is used solely for coaching our Al algorithms and never for another functions.”  

This initiative exhibits that corporations are keen to pay to get customers’ knowledge they suppose will be helpful to coach their AI fashions. Whereas this offers some customers the flexibility to get worth out of their very own knowledge, there are safety and privateness dangers concerned.  

Living proof: Final week, TechCrunch discovered that Neon, a viral calling app that supplied cash to customers keen to share recordings and transcripts of their calls, had a safety flaw that allowed customers to entry another consumer’s knowledge. After being alerted of the safety lapse, Neon went offline.  

A whole bunch of hundreds of movies ‘donated’ to coach AI

Eufy’s marketing campaign providing $2 per video for theft movies ran from December 18, 2024, to February 25, 2025. Greater than 120 customers responded on the marketing campaign’s announcement web page saying they participated in it, in keeping with feedback posted by customers there.  

The corporate’s aim was to gather 20,000 movies every of package deal thefts and of “pulling automobile doorways.” Eufy customers may take part by filling out a Google Type the place they might add movies and their PayPal account for fee.  

Eufy didn’t reply to TechCrunch’s requests for remark and our questions, similar to what number of customers participated within the marketing campaign, how a lot cash it paid these customers, what number of movies the corporate collected, and whether or not the corporate deleted the collected movies after coaching its AI programs.  

Since then, Eufy has related campaigns aimed toward incentivizing its prospects to ship in movies to coach their AI. 

As of the time of publication, by means of one other in-app marketing campaign that Eufy calls the Video Donation Program to enhance its AI programs, Eufy additionally provides customers rewards that vary from an “Apprentice Medal,” which seems to easily be a badge subsequent to the consumer’s identify within the app, to items similar to cameras or reward playing cards. 

Eufy is simply asking for movies involving people for this marketing campaign. 

The Eufy app additionally exhibits an “Honor Wall” that ranks customers who’ve donated probably the most video occasions. The chief of the rating has donated 201,531 movies, in keeping with the app.  

Within the app’s web page for the donation program, Eufy clarifies that “donated movies are solely used for Al coaching and enchancment. Eufy is not going to present the video to 3rd events.” 

Eufy additionally asks customers to donate movies recorded with the corporate’s child displays. The assist web page detailing the steps to share the movies doesn’t point out any cash reward for these movies.  

Eufy didn’t reply when requested about this explicit initiative.  

There are causes to be uncertain of Eufy’s commitments to guard customers’ privateness. In 2023, The Verge revealed that the corporate tried to cowl up that customers’ digital camera streams, which the corporate marketed as end-to-end encrypted, have been unencrypted when accessed by means of its net portal.  

After a back-and-forth with the tech information web site, Anker admitted it misled customers and promised to repair the problem.