What's My Neighbor Doing Right Now
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Super article here from Forbes, in part:
The domestic use of drones is a popular topic following
Congress’ recently passed FAA
Modernization and Reform Act of 2012.
The act provides funding for the FAA over the next four
years, but the portions of the bill (§§ 331-336) that herald the possibility of
expanded access to U.S. airspace for unmanned aircraft systems (UAS’s) are
drawing the most attention. A number of organizations have criticized this
portion of the bill as setting a dangerous precedent that will pave the way for
government and private parties to trample on privacy rights. The ACLU,
for example, has been quite vocal in its criticism of this portion of the bill,
releasing a report and a series of tweets to demonstrate their concerns over the prospect
of intrusive aerial surveillance without proper safeguards.
While a robust public debate over the bill and the domestic
use of drones is warranted, the conclusion that widespread privacy violations
are imminent is premature.
The ACLU and other
organizations believe the approach followed by Congress fails to adequately
address the privacy and civil liberties concerns which were largely ignored by
the bill and were not discussed during the
Senate’s floor debate.
Dozens of signatories, led by the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC),
have sent an open letter to
the FAA petitioning the government to address their privacy concerns.
Proponents of the bill (supporters of expanded drone use in general) argue that
privacy concerns are overblown and result from unfamiliarity with drone
technology and current air regulations.
David Uberti’s informative article posted
on Medill National Security Zone helpfully summarizes
some of the opposing viewpoints. As summarized by Ben Geilom, government
relations manager for the Association for UVS International, who said: “… current
regulations for manned aircraft should extend to their unmanned counterparts.
The aircraft itself is new and maturing. But the systems payload – the cameras
and sensors that are on the unmanned system – are not new. In fact, they have
been used by law enforcement and others on manned aircraft for decades,” Geilom
concluded.
Under current law
drones are restricted to flying in specifically designated airspace.
However some domestic uses of drones have already occurred, including
access to military airspace, border patrol (both with Mexico and
Canada), intelligence gathering on
Mexican drug cartels, and use by a number of public agencies for research and,
under special circumstances, law enforcement purposes.
In the March/April issue of Foreign Policy, Micah Zenko notes:
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