Drone Spies & Thieves: Celebs’ Privacy Under Siege!

by

Emilia Clarke found herself sitting comfortably at home in Venice, California when a humming sound like that of an insect caught her attention. Looking up, she spotted a drone, suspended outside her living room’s large windows, focusing its camera on the ‘Mother of Dragons’ during her interview.

“There’s a drone looking in my house!” a stunned Clarke exclaimed. “That’s really creepy.”

As soon as it was seen, the drone took flight. Approximately twenty minutes on, the noisy machine sneaked back for another look at her privacy. Clark felt frustrated and distinctly uncomfortable.

OR

The moment it was noticed, the drone sped away. Yet, about 20 minutes later, the buzzing device returned to peer once more into her private area. Clark grew agitated and felt uneasy.

Both sentences convey the same meaning but are phrased differently for variety and readability.

This incident occurred in 2019, four years following the enactment of a California law prohibiting drone operators from intruding into private property’s airspace. However, unlawful use of drones has persisted and even increased over time, as stated by Mike Fraietta, an FAA drone pilot and founder of Gargoyle Systems. In response to this issue, security systems designed for drones are becoming more prevalent as businesses and event organizers seek to safeguard their airspace. High-end, military-grade drone-detection systems, often used in events such as sports, can cost roughly $200,000.

The misuse of drones has significantly escalated, Fraietta notes. While laws have been implemented, they don’t always prevent such actions. In urban areas with tall buildings, like New York and Austin, people often believe they’re too high to be noticed, but drones are capable of operating at those altitudes.

In 2020, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle contacted the Los Angeles Police Department several times to report nuisance drone operators. Additionally, drones have been a persistent issue on movie sets, causing Ryan Reynolds and his castmates on “Deadpool & Wolverine” to prepare an escape plan if they spotted one during filming of sensitive scenes. Although a viral video showing Drake chasing off a drone from a high-rise apartment was staged, it highlights the widespread issue of these invasive privacy violations by drones.

Drones aren’t limited to being used by stalkers and photographers for spying on celebrities; they are also reportedly utilized by criminals for casing targets, and can function as surveillance tools during burglaries. “Daily robberies are happening with the help of drones,” Fraietta points out.

It was reported in November by the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department that a series of burglaries in Stevenson Ranch were being carried out using drones. At approximately the same time, the Associated Press received a memo from the NBA, which warned team officials about “South American theft groups operating across borders” utilizing drones and advanced technology to target affluent athletes. Similarly, last year, _The San Diego Union-Tribune_ claimed that burglaries of beachside homes were suspected to have been committed using drones.

7 Hamming, CEO of the Dutch company Robin Radar Systems, which specializes in advanced detection systems, has noted incidents of drone-aided burglaries happening across Europe too. “While it’s not widespread, we’ve observed a few instances where drones were employed for surveillance during high-end burglaries,” Hamming said. “Drones can be useful in gathering information about the layout and security measures of a property beforehand. Moreover, they can also be utilized in real time to signal when it might be necessary to vacate the premises.

The situation has grown increasingly complex, thanks to swift progress in drone technology primarily fueled by the ongoing military conflicts in Ukraine. According to the European Council on Foreign Relations, over a hundred distinct models of drones have been employed in this conflict during the last three years.

Fraietta, after working with Ukrainian drone teams, notes that it’s astonishing how quickly conflict zones are producing drones that are increasingly hard to spot. The pace at which this advancement is occurring is almost unimaginable,” says Fraietta.

Drones are usually spotted due to their noise or the radio signal used by operators to control them. However, according to Fraietta, advancements in technology are being made in three key areas: integrating AI to autonomously navigate sections of a predefined flight path without relying on radio signals, developing quieter drone wings, and utilizing tethered wires similar to kite strings. While the idea of a tethered drone may initially seem absurd, these fibre optic cables also enable 4K streaming and render the drone undetectable by law enforcement looking for radio frequencies. This allows them to evade detection and move much more swiftly and quietly than they could a year ago. Remarkably, these tethers can span miles in length.

Advanced drone technology hasn’t caused significant problems outside of conflict zones – so far, it seems. As Hamminga points out, in the commercial sector, its impact is relatively minimal at this point.

If your home is being disturbed by a drone, whether you’re a celebrity or not, here’s an option: Reach out to your local non-emergency police line. While it may not lead to an immediate arrest, the presence of a patrol car might deter the drone operator from continuing to bother you. Additionally, this interaction could result in a report being filed, which could be beneficial for future reference.

Drones are usually detected using RF (radio frequency) or radar technology. You can find RF-radar systems for less than $100,000 that will alert you when a common drone is nearby, offering at least some level of situational awareness according to Hamminga. Although radar-based systems can detect all drones, they are more expensive, costing at least half a million dollars and are not typically purchased by commercial consumers. In simpler terms, RF detection is affordable and catches most drones, while radar detection, though it catches all drones, is quite pricey and not commonly bought by businesses.

Apart from Fraietta, competitors are simultaneously working on economical solutions to monitor a drone’s flight path and synchronize them with smart home technology for automatic responses like lowering the shades or turning on lights.

It’s crucial to remember that you can’t bring down or disable a drone, even if it hovers above your property. This is because drones are considered aircraft, and damaging them goes against the Aircraft Sabotage Act. As Fraietta points out, this is an offense you don’t want to be associated with. Instead of resorting to shotguns for protection from unwanted drones, he suggests implementing smart security measures.

You can find this tale in the March 19 edition of The Hollywood Reporter periodical. Subscribe now by clicking here.

Read More

2025-03-21 17:25