Drones are spying

[Biztruth]

Drones and China

Love to fly drones? Well, you could be inadvertently sending data to the Chinese government. Wait, what? Homeland Security issued a warning about this, saying Chinese-made drones could be sending sensitive flight data to their manufacturers in China. It's believed that almost 80% of drones used in the US and Canada are made by DJI, a company in Shenzhen, China. Drone users are encouraged to switch off the device's internet connection and remove secure digital cards if the products were manufactured in China. The US Army banned drones made by DJI two years ago over fears the company was sharing info with the Chinese government.

 

[TurboDad81]

There's already a thread about this here > Chinese stealing data?

 

[AH-1G]

Drones and China

Love to fly drones? Well, you could be inadvertently sending data to the Chinese government. Wait, what? Homeland Security issued a warning about this, saying Chinese-made drones could be sending sensitive flight data to their manufacturers in China. It's believed that almost 80% of drones used in the US and Canada are made by DJI, a company in Shenzhen, China. Drone users are encouraged to switch off the device's internet connection and remove secure digital cards if the products were manufactured in China. The US Army banned drones made by DJI two years ago over fears the company was sharing info with the Chinese government.

Right here.

Chinese stealing data?

I just read a story which claims DHS is fear mongering about Chinese drone manufacturers stealing date. CNN mentions DJI and suggests it is the drone company DHS suspects. Now, I'm thinking this is total B.S. and CNN only took info from some anonymous source. How would the Chinese or...

yuneecpilots.com

 

[Eagle's Eye Video]

Much of this may not apply to the Yuneec brand... the only possible exceptions being the Mantis and the Breeze... the only 2 models operating with an app. All other models with an independent controller... not operating with an active internet connection, are not going to be a likely target.

 

[PatR]

Anything that uses an OTA update, uses a computer “assistant” or GUI that connects to the web, or web based apps, is a massive security risk.

 

[Eslader]

I dunno. I'm not connected to the internet when I'm flying the Typhoon H, but when I get back home and connect the controller to wifi to upload telemetry, that's a window of opportunity for the controller to also send a message home.

I'm not saying it does, or that Yuneec would do anything nefarious with it if it did, but one problem with Chinese businesses in general is that the government gets what it wants, all the time.

If the FBI goes to Google and wants transcripts of what I say to my Google Home, Google will tell them to kiss off until they have a subpoena, and they might even fight the subpoena. China, not so much. When the government demands data from a company, the business has no choice but to give it to them.

All that said, it's not like I'm shooting technical schematics for nuclear submarines with my drone here. If the Chinese government really wants to know how many geese are at the local pond where I practice-fly, more power to 'em.

 

[Russell Smith]

Much of this does not apply to the Yuneec brand... the only possible exceptions being the Mantis and the Breeze... the only 2 models operating with an app. All other models with an independent controller... not operating with an active internet connection, are not going to be a likely target.

so why in my older Q500 controller did I notice a cellular service running and a contact list of some Chinese gal with her phone number. I really don't think there is an embedded cellular module built in... so why are there any services running that may have no purpose for flying.

 

[AH-1G]

It's your secret girlfriend, come on fess up?.

 

[Eagle's Eye Video]

so why in my older Q500 controller did I notice a cellular service running and a contact list of some Chinese gal with her phone number. I really don't think there is an embedded cellular module built in... so why are there any services running that may have no purpose for flying.

I have not seen much on this board about such a background app running on the independent controllers. At least on posts here, I've seen concerns on OTA updates, as @PatR mentioned... as well as concerns when people try to install PlayStore on a controller.

 

[Mrgs1]

I dunno. I'm not connected to the internet when I'm flying the Typhoon H, but when I get back home and connect the controller to wifi to upload telemetry, that's a window of opportunity for the controller to also send a message home.

I'm not saying it does, or that Yuneec would do anything nefarious with it if it did, but one problem with Chinese businesses in general is that the government gets what it wants, all the time.

If the FBI goes to Google and wants transcripts of what I say to my Google Home, Google will tell them to kiss off until they have a subpoena, and they might even fight the subpoena. China, not so much. When the government demands data from a company, the business has no choice but to give it to them.

All that said, it's not like I'm shooting technical schematics for nuclear submarines with my drone here. If the Chinese government really wants to know how many geese are at the local pond where I practice-fly, more power to 'em.

You could perceive that this information would be gathered on mass, so your trip to the pond maybe irrelevant, but would show your habits, and that of thousands of others, and possibly you would fly somewhere which may be of more interest to a data gathering organisation.

 

[DoomMeister]

If that were really true, I could give them photos they could not un-see. I’ll start taking photos at the pools in The Villages. Just imagine all the bald potbellied old men and the pruned up old ladies. Talk about visual warfare, they would wake up in a cold sweat from nightmares about seeing that again.

 

[Mrgs1]

If that were really true, I could give them photos they could not un-see. I’ll start taking photos at the pools in The Villages. Just imagine all the bald potbellied old men and the pruned up old ladies. Talk about visual warfare, they would wake up in a cold sweat from nightmares about seeing that again.

Perhaps they would develop Wigs, hairloss, and diet products from all the information received.?

 

[Fred Garvin]

For me personally.....I view it like the conspiracy theories about the NSA listening to every phone call, reading every text/email....they’re gonna take one look at me:

He bought groceries at Walmart....stir fry Szechuan Beef tonight....took his mom to lunch.....yes, that shingle is damaged....that chimney cap should be replaced......half the fence was blown down.....he got gas at QT and a Gatorade....

And never look at me again.....so personally I don’t care. I’m just an average boring Joe Smith. The bigger picture though, all the millions and millions of images and videos, flight data.....and not just from DJI drones but all the stuff posted openly....it’s a massive amount of pretty decent on the ground recon data and fully compiled could be mined for useful intel.....imagine an effort to gather all this data and structure it into a searchable location database of images, videos, comments, descriptions....oh, wait, that’s Google......

DJI is the most successful spying operation in Chinese history? It’s the perfect cover....build a legitimate drone company, for all intents and purposes functioning as such....but the real reason for existence is to gather data. The customers, doing all the work, legitimately using their drones for personal and commercial reasons.... are the unwitting field agents of this massive surveillance effort.....

 

[PatR]

When we consider that as of just a few years ago, after hacking the files from our Office of Personnel Management, the Chinese had the name and background information of everyone that had a security clearance, was a government employee, or affiliated with our military, 22 million of them, there is much to pursue if they cross referenced those identities with other obtained data. I have no doubt that has been done.

Governments, ours included, have very large groups of people and entire agencies with vast resources devoted to that purpose.

As for our NSA recording or tracking every electronic media conversation, it was only a month or so ago they mentioned the possibility of stopping the practice with some domestically generated and delivered media.

If anyone thinks the practice isn’t happening, just start sending out a series of e-mails and social media posts to friends and family with the right trigger words suggestive of the kind of activity that will generate an investigative response.

 

[AH-1G]

Alexa is listening!

 

[PatR]

Indeed, and people pay out of pocket to participate.

 

[Mrgs1]

Alexa is listening!

She can stay in a box in an Amazon warehouse. Already have one and she's always listening!

 

[Good time Charlie]

Alexa is listening!

Indeed.

Marketing would have us all believe that we NEED a live microphone residing in our living room. Not saying anybody is listening....just that a live mic is a live mic. It's only job is to take in sound and transmit it somewhere.

 

[PatR]

Cell phones are no better. I had to attend a security briefing a few years ago where it was demonstrated how easy it was for people with the skills to remotely activate cell phone microphones and remain on even when a phone was turned off, providing a constant flow of conversations to a remote listener.

 

[Russell Smith]

It's your secret girlfriend, come on fess up?.

better hide that from my better half... haha!