In 2022, U.S. law enforcement made more than 2 million arrests along the southern border – the highest number ever at the border.
Even worse, the cartels are always coming up with ways to defeat the latest U.S. security upgrades.
It’s no secret that the U.S. military and government agencies have used drones extensively.
This includes the Department of Homeland Security using drones along the southern border.
But, as law enforcement started using drones along the border, cartels started working on ways to beat them.
This included hacking drones that border patrol agents use to monitor the area.
According to the Department of Homeland Security…
“The bad guys on the borders have lots of money, and what they’re putting money into is in spoofing and jamming of GPS.”
Spoofing is a technique where hackers send a signal that impersonates the signal that the drone has been receiving. It allows the hackers to take control of the drone.
One cyber security expert said, “Drone hacking will be an increasing threat in years to come.”
But, when it comes to drones, the security risks aren’t just from hackers. There could be risks in simply just buying the drone.
So, if you are considering getting a drone there are a few security factors to keep in mind before spending a lot of money.
Where is the drone made?:
The majority of non-military drones are made in China.
One company, DJI or Da Jang Innovations is a technology company based in Shenzhen, China. The company is known for making inexpensive drones.
DJI, controls more than 70% of the U.S. hobby drone market, and also sells about 90% of commercial drones in the U.S.
The scary thing is, the company has direct funding ties to the Chinese government.
And if the Chinese government is providing funding, I can assure you that they are getting something in return.
So, if you are in the market for a drone, I would stay away from models made in China.
Don’t use your phone:
Many drones allow users to operate the drone with their smartphone.
The smartphone acts as the remote control for the drone (you can also use a computer or tablet).
The bad thing is that by connecting the drone to your smartphone, it essentially gives the drone access to your phone.
It’s like downloading the Tik Tok app to your smartphone. You might as well send the Chinese government all your data and everything on the smartphone.
If you are going to use a drone you should have a dedicated smartphone or tablet to use with the drone and nothing else.
The idea is that the tablet or smartphone that you use won’t contain any personal data that could be stolen.
Return home:
Before buying a drone, you should ensure that the drone has a return-to-home feature.
The way this feature works is that if the drone loses signal, or if the signal is jammed, or if the battery is about to die, the drone will return home.
Of course, the home location should be your house or where you launched the drone from.
But you want to make sure this feature is enabled and set up before launching the drone.
The feature doesn’t mean the drone cannot be hacked. Yet, it’s a good security measure to have in place in case something goes wrong.
As drones continue to be used by companies and hobbyists, the companies that make them will always be looking at ways to improve security.
But you can be sure that along with security improvements, criminals will look for new weaknesses to expose.
So, make sure you get a quality drone with these security features set up and ready to go.
