Exclusive: U.S. States Are Flying Thousands Of Chinese Drones Across The East Coast. Marco Rubio Is Furious.
Thomas Brewster Forbes Staff
Senior writer at Forbes covering cybercrime, privacy and surveillance.
Jun 1, 2023,11:05am EDT
In an "experimental" project, Capitol Police is testing Chinese drones, though says it's doing so away from Washington D.C. and with security measures in place. (Photo by Yasin Ozturk/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images) Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
FOIA records show state governments and local police are buying thousands of Chinese drones made by DJI and Autel, flying them all over the East Coast. Marco Rubio says there’s “no excuse.”
In Washington D.C., lawmakers have been banging the drum about China potentially turning drones from Beijing’s industry giants into remote aerial surveillance machines, threatening national security and Americans’ privacy. Yet U.S. cops and states continue to purchase Beijing manufacturers’ drones. Freedom of Information Act responses and previously-unreported police data reveal state and local agencies have registered thousands of Chinese flying machines from companies Autel and DJI, the world’s biggest drone maker valued at $16 billion.
That even extends to the United States Capitol Police: records of state government drone registrations at the Federal Aviation Administration show the United States Capitol Police has four models manufactured by China’s Autel Robotics. They are the only drones currently in use by the Capitol Police, according to spokesman Tim Barber, who said they were acquired last year for $2,000 each, but are yet to be deployed around Washington D.C. and were being used for training with no access to the department’s network. The purchases came to light thanks to freedom of information requests filed by Jerome Greco, who filed the FOIAs outside of his role as supervising attorney at the Legal Aid Society.
That Capitol Police chose Chinese manufacturer Autel for its only drone purchases rather than buy American is indicative of a wider trend: Autel and DJI have 70% market share in the local government market across Florida, New Jersey, New York and Washington D.C., and dominance amongst major police departments in Maryland and Virginia. But states may soon have to bring the manufacturers and their drones back down to earth, should others follow Ron DeSantis’ lead in Florida and ban China-made unmanned aerial vehicles over intelligence concerns, or Congress pass proposed legislation to counter the apparent threat of foreign espionage.
The American intelligence community’s fears about Chinese spying have manifested in various attempts to curtail Beijing’s biggest technology companies and their data gathering efforts, the most prominent example being recent threats to outlaw TikTok, owned by Beijing’s ByteDance. Huawei and ZTE are amongst the bigger names to have already suffered; the White House has blocked their entrance into the U.S. market.
>>>18935729, >>18935743 Bannon: Jim Jordan and MTG “Should Both Face Primary Challenges from Real MAGA” For Voting with Dems on Uniparty Spending Bill
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You like Satan and drops?
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in reddit speak
time
for
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circle!
POTUS is our savior. Q #111
US Military = savior of mankind. Q #114
You are the saviors of mankind. Q #2442
#2442
Q !!mG7VJxZNCI 11/06/2018 16:16:21 ID:
8chan/patriotsfight: 422
History is being made.
You are the saviors of mankind.
Nothing will stop what is coming.
Nothing.
Q
https://www.cisa.gov/safecom/NCSWIC
https://www.cisa.gov/safecom/about-ncswic
https://www.cisa.gov/about/contact-us
Anons, please hold hands and pray with Q team
Our Father…
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Who financed 9-11?
Putting Groomers On Notice WW Edition
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works in mysterious ways…