Like many houses in the area, we have external ring doorbells at the entrances, which allow two-way audio communication with guests and the cleaning staff for check in/check out purposes and deliveries. The suggestion that we use them to somehow invade the privacy of guests, or that there are any devices inside the house, is pure nonsense.
That aside, it is important to understand why this guest is upset and left a poor review. As is common in this neighborhood, our policy is not to rent to student groups. As clearly stated both in our listing and rental agreement, the primary renter must be over 25, and guests under 25 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Moreover, about two months before this guest's rental began, we received indications that she was renting the property as a surrogate for a group of high school students. We sent her a reminder of our policy, and offered a full refund if she wanted to cancel and find another place. We told her that if a group of students tried to check in, they would be asked to leave immediately. She chose not to cancel and get a refund. Instead, she sent us what turned out to be a fictitious guest list, which stated that the property would be occupied by five adults in their 50s, one 82 year old, and two 17 year olds.
On the date of check in, the first arrivals were three teenagers. We called the guest, who assured us that she, her brother and other family members were on the way and would be there shortly. An hour passed, and four more teens arrived. Later, more vehicles arrived, with approximately seven more teens. We again called the guest, who said the adults were not coming that night, but insisted that the teens absolutely were not staying at the property. Meanwhile, the teens (who all had suitcases) were standing right in front of the Ring doorbell, talking loudly about which beds each of them were going to take. They were carrying large, visible quantities of beer and other alcohol. Given this blatant violation of our policy, and our legal obligation not to host an underaged drinking party, we terminated access to the property.
In short, this guest is upset with the Ring doorbells, because they exposed her repeated lies and foiled her scheme to fraudulently rent the property for an illegal drinking party for teenagers. Anyone with a similar intent should indeed be concerned about the cameras. For other guests, they are merely a helpful accommodation and added security.