US Government Warns of 'Data Threat' by Chinese-Made Drones

The US government has stated more concerns about the threats of Chinese-made devices. This time it's drones.

A notice reviewed by Reuters on May 20 states that the Department of Homeland Security has "strong concerns about any technology product that takes American data into the territory of an authoritarian state that permits its intelligence services to have unfettered access to that data or otherwise abuses that access."

In other words, the DHS is concerned that Chinese-made drones can gather information about US companies and relay it back to China.

US companies were also urged to "be aware of whether your Unmanned Aircraft Systems data is being stored by the vendor or other third parties. If it is being stored, find out how, where, and for how long."

While no Chinese companies were named in the notice, the world's largest maker of consumer drones, DJI (based in Shenzhen, China) responded via a statement that "the security of our technology has been independently verified by the US government and leading US businesses. (We) give customers full and complete control over how their data is collected, stored, and transmitted ... (and) provide drones that do not transfer data to DJI or via the internet."

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