More than 30 lawmakers in the United States have requested a federal inquiry into drones donated to law enforcement agencies and firefighters across the country by a company based in China, expressing concern about possible security problems.
Less than a week after South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson issued a letter to Congressional leaders requesting a hearing to address China’s role in the new coronavirus pandemic, which referred to “suspected drone gifts for state, local and federal officials “of Shenzhen-based technology company Da Jiang Innovations (DJI), members of the US House of Representatives have called for similar actions in two separate letters released on Wednesday.
The most recent letters, supported by 14 members of the Republican Party of the House Judiciary Committee, asked for information from the United States Justice and Homeland Security departments on the use of DJI drones by states, suggesting that the law enforcement agencies that received them may not be aware of potential intelligence risks.
“We write respectfully to request information on the use of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) produced by Da Jiang Innovations (DJI), a Chinese company that accounts for almost 80 percent of drone sales in the United States,” says the letter. I read, subsequently citing an April 1 statement from the DJI in which the company confirmed that 100 drones were donated to the police, firefighters and public security departments in 22 U.S. states.
At the time, DJI said the donations were part of its Disaster Relief Program, announced a week earlier, to “help public security agencies in the United States cope with the coronavirus.” Along with its statement, the company shared a color-coded national map to illustrate generally where the drones were sent, but did not cite individual organizations outside the Daytona Beach, Florida Police Department.
In Wednesday’s letters, members of the judiciary committee highlighted an earlier report by Homeland Security Investigations, a branch of the Department of Homeland Security, which states that drones produced by DJI are “[l]effectively providing critical US infrastructure and law enforcement data “to government officials in China.
“Although federal law enforcement agencies have warned of potential information security concerns with DJI drones, it is not clear whether state and local law enforcement agencies are fully aware of these issues,” continued the committee.
In a statement obtained by Newsweek on Thursday, DJI representatives called the charges “false allegations” and noted the benefits of using drones during a pandemic that requires physical distance.
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“Since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, DJI has helped local public safety officials to keep their communities safe at a distance. That means equipping local police and firefighters with DJI technology so they can help with social detachment efforts. and get supplies where they are needed without exposing the first respondents unnecessarily, “said the company. “With more frontline employees testing positive for COVID-19, our focus is on providing our public security professionals with all possible tools to fight the virus and protect citizens. That is our goal. False claims that our drones spy on people or send data to In fact, China risks interfering with public security efforts to protect people and communities. “
Ultimately, letters to the DOJ and Homeland Security officials sought greater transparency about how the U.S. monitors the use of DJI drones by state agencies and inquired about any additional information about possible intelligence threats that were not brought to the committee’s attention. He asked both agencies to provide the information requested before the end of May 27.