New Report Warns That Drones Could Be Used for Stalking, Voyeurism

[Redfairen]

Source: Slate

The sight of a drone in flight is likely to become a regular occurrence in the United States within the next few years. But the rise of unmanned technology could lead to new crimes like “drone stalking” and “drone trespassing,” lawmakers are being told.

A Congressional Research Service report published Wednesday, Integration of Drones Into Domestic Airspace: Selected Legal Issues, sets out the many contentious areas around unmanned aircraft. It cautions that in the future, as drones become more easily available to private citizens, we may see the technology used to commit various offences. This could mean neighbors using drones to infiltrate one another’s gardens as a means of harassment, or a voyeur using one strapped with a camera and microphone to photograph women and listen in on people’s conversations.

“Traditional crimes such as stalking, harassment, voyeurism, and wiretapping may all be committed through the operation of a drone,” the report says. “As drones are further introduced into the national airspace, courts will have to work this new form of technology into their jurisprudence, and legislatures might amend these various statutes to expressly include crimes committed with a drone.”

.......

These issues may seem hypothetical now—but they are likely to come to the fore relatively soon. Last year, Congress tasked the FAA with safely integrating drones into the national airspace system by September 2015. Border security agencies are already using military-style drones like the Predator to conduct surveillance of border areas, and some law enforcement departments have used them, too—in one case, even to help arrest a farmer in North Dakota. Federal, state, and local agencies must obtain authorization from the FAA to fly large Predator-style drones, which can be used in designated airspace zones only. But regulations around small model-plane-size aircraft are more relaxed, and as they become more popular and affordable, legal conflicts seem inevitable.

Read more: http://www.slate.com/blogs/future_tense/2013/02/01/drones_could_be_used_for_stalking_voyeurism_says_congressional_research.html

[KG]

1. but, you know, if you're not doing anything wrong you got nothing to worry about...

[Cynicus Emeritus]

18. That's what they* say as they exchange civil rights

for security.

*tyrants and others

[KG]

20. wasn't thinking of tyrants. was quoting my fellow citizens.

[Cynicus Emeritus]

24. I agree totally. I wasn't clear

Our fellow citizens are saying it and it is sad. The PTB are pushing Patriot Acts 1,2,3 etc while convincing the masses there is no need to fear an erosion of liberties, except by those who are doing something wrong like peacefully demonstrating.

[Katashi_itto]

30. The report further suggest Drones will make great marital aids and sex toys.

Bedrooms will need to be enlarged to accommodate take off and landings.

[Cynicus Emeritus]

2. If an unknown drone was caught peeking in windows or spying

on your nude sunbathing daughter or wife does an armed citizen have the right to shoot them down or should they not? It might be from Google Streets.

That's the question that we all need answered. If a drone is trespassing do we have right to depose of such inanimate intruders who violate our right of privacy? Drones probably don't have an ID or do they knock on the door and then ID themselves.

I might buy an AR15 with a 100 round drum and dedicate it to that purpose. Am I wrong?

[ProgressiveProfessor]

5. You would be better off using a shotgun

Though jamming will be quite effective too and you might get some resale out of the parts

[CreekDog]

9. Great idea just start shooting in your neighborhood

Maybe get a bunch of lead residue in the house for your childen to absorb.

Get more children innoculated to the sound of gunfire. Teach them to shoot at whatever is bothering them.

Teach them that guns solve problems, all kinds of problems.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

10. Was the sarcasm that hard to detect?

[CreekDog]

14. well your posts have that Onion quality

except you usually are serious.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

15. I thought the comment about sell the pieces was sufficient

I tend not to use smilies

[Ian David]

27. Probably better to dazzle its optics with a laser pointer. n/t

[ProgressiveProfessor]

31. But how does that help you recover it and salvage it for parts?

Does Radio Shack take returns without a receipt?

[OnyxCollie]

6. A drone piloted by activists

is shot down on this NOVA special, Rise of the Drones.
http://video.pbs.org/video/2326108547/

[ProgressiveProfessor]

11. Privacy issues caused by the low end "toys" is real

Current rules require 400ft AGL and continuously in the field of view of the operator. Few if any of the hobby ones can do that.

Jamming the data links (C&C and Video) is also trivial and they are in open bands so FCC support would be very limited if at all. Furthermore documenting it would be almost impossible.

SHARK's trespassing with them over shotgun events seem to get the expected reaction.

[Cynicus Emeritus]

17. Interesting link -thanks

This technology can be used for good and evil. It is concerning that it has given the PTB a belief that there are no rules. The only rules are the capabilities of the device. No need to declare war by Congress. No need to get warrants. We need to be very concerned where this is all headed when this is directed internally towards we the people. Few in Congress give any priority to protecting our civil rights. Protecting our security has and will be used as a strawman to take our rights.

[L0oniX]

23. My NRA trained falcon will take out any drone. n/t

[Deep13]

26. National Raptor Association? nt

[L0oniX]

34. You got it!

[Mnemosyne]

3. I hate curtains. nt

[Javaman]

4. I don't think anyone could have predicted this. nt

[Arctic Dave]

7. They should be great for burglars.

Send a drone to the house first to case it.

[cosmicone]

8. Drones don't do much better than remote sensing satellites we currently have.

The satellites which can read a license plate can surely photograph nude backyard sunbathers.

Toy airplanes equipped with a camera (sort of drones)... are freely available and are far more affordable to an average stalker than a $5.8 million drone which requires a whole ground station and satellite communication to work properly.

Drones have been extremely effective in breaking Pakistani terror networks without risking American lives and this news is just a lot of drama to make people go against the strategy.

I don't like innocent civilians dying any more than an average person. However, a ground invasion and non-drone warfare kills a lot more innocents than the drones. In Iraq, with very conventional warfare, between 300K to 1 million innocent civilians died (depending upon whom you believe). The drones are no where close to reaching that number.

[independentpiney]

16. you are making way too much sense nt

[rocktivity]

12. Candidate for this year's "You Call This NEWS?" Award

The "To Figure This Out, You Had To Do A Freaking STUDY?" Category

And if that wouldn't be enough fun, how would the drone know when it had the right suspect?


rocktivity

[Zorro]

13. Personal anti-drone drones are the answer

Now that will be an emerging market.

[L0oniX]

22. NRA approved. n/t

[dixiegrrrrl]

29. and then anti- anti drones for the anti drones........

[Phoonzang]

19. Ok? So...

are we supposed to ban the purchase of anything with a propeller now?

[randome]

33. Anything used for survellance that has only one syllable.

I swear, it's the word 'drone' that causes so much freaking out. It sounds so sinister, I bet if they were called something else, no one would care.

[L0oniX]

21. Drones over nudist colonies. Oh NOES!

[TheMadMonk]

25. THIS. Is how they will legislate ANY camera fitted...

...R/C toy out of our hands and make sure they're not there to film the abuses at protests, etc.

[wishlist]

28. Cost and skill level required too high for widespread use

I belong to two model airplane associations with hundreds of highly skilled members but only one member has anything resembling a drone. He practices with it at our flying fields to get more expertise to be able to use it in his forestry surveying work. Seems to me that both the technical expertise and expense to use it effectively would keep most stalkers from using it, but private investigators and paparazzi who are highly paid for photos would be most likely to take advantage of the opportunity.

[FiveGoodMen]

32. That's the whole point of making them

It's just a question of who will be stalking and voyeuring at the controls.

If it's our own government ... well ... it's not fascism when WE do it!