A Chinese company “dominates the global market for the small, low-altitude drones used by hobbyists, photographers, and many businesses and governments,” ABC News noted on Tuesday, June 2, 2021, and that’s a problem because of fears they may be spying on U.S. critical infrastructure. Read story here.
Think I’m paranoid? Maybe, but I’m not alone. The Interior Department grounded hundreds of Chinese-made drones “it was using to track wildfires and monitor dams, volcanoes and wildlife” a year ago, and “it’s starting to look like they won’t be flying again.” And not just because Congress is considering banning them from government use.
The Pentagon claims it found no malicious code in the drones’ software, but it’s hard to find anyone this side of the South China Sea who trusts them. For example,
“Mike Monnik, an Australian expert, said there’s a ‘dangerous’ risk that outside agents could pull data off the drones given their many unfixed software concerns. Monnik, the chief technology officer at DroneSec, a firm that researches drone cybersecurity vulnerabilities, added that only cutting off the drones entirely from the internet could ensure the security of their data.”
And there’s this:
“National security concerns about DJI drones have lingered since at least 2017, when a document from U.S. customs authorities alleged that the drones likely provided China with access to critical infrastructure and law enforcement data.”
And,
“In December, the Commerce Department placed DJI on a list of blacklisted Chinese firms subject to export restrictions on national security grounds.”
The distrust of everything Chinese isn’t mindless stereotyping. It has been earned and is well-deserved. China has been stealing other countries’ technology for years, and doesn’t hesitate to exploit it for military and geopolitical advantage. In their thinking, World War 3 will be fought with computers, not ICBMs and nuclear bombs.
Don’t forget that in China even private companies are subject to government control, and can be enlisted for its purposes. Huwei, the world’s largest telecom equipment supplier, is facing western bans on suspicion its gear is being used for surveillance. China is run by ruthless dictators on an expansionist binge, is growing increasingly confrontational, and it’s ridiculous how dependent we’ve let ourselves become on them. Trump cast his pushback as a trade war, but it’s bigger than that, it’s a struggle for global supremacy.
And in a Cold War, you don’t let your adversary watch your every move, and draw maps of your electrical and communications grids.
Photo: It’s not just the cops watching; Beijing is watching, too