private drones

[JimmiesForBitcoins]

It's one thing for governments, who have some legitimacy in what they're doing, but have other people doing it... it's not going to happen."

I completely disagree. They have no legitimacy to be doing it whatsoever. Private individuals actually would, whether for resource prospecting, security, or search and rescue. There's lots of legitimate commercial applications for it. But letting a completely unaccountable, monopolistic organization that has the power to imprison and/or fine you thousands of dollars for destroying their hardware? Letting them monitor, track, and pass judgments upon you remotely from hundreds of feet in the air?

You must think CISPA is fantastic.

Just to clarify.

Whoops. It happens sometimes when I try to limit the size of wall-of-texts.

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[Mike Christ]

The government is always legitimate; and if what they're doing is not legitimate, they'll pass a law to make it legitimate.  After the Patriot Act, I don't see how the government could ever do wrong   It is, after all, legal for them to do whatever it takes to get those gosh golly-gee-wiz dang-darned terrorists.

[NedKLee]

May  I recommend reading "Kill Decision" by Daniel Suarez, you want Drones, you got 'em, then start looking over your shoulder.

[pheaonix]

it seems google has revealed themselves to be idiotic statists

[Rassah]

Would be neat seeing a large drone get swarmed by a small flock of quadcopters, like little birds trying to defend their home from a hawk. Though might get messy down below.

[myrkul]

Would be neat seeing a large drone get swarmed by a small flock of quadcopters, like little birds trying to defend their home from a hawk. Though might get messy down below.

Yeah, falling wreckage could get dangerous.

[Rassah]

Would be neat seeing a large drone get swarmed by a small flock of quadcopters, like little birds trying to defend their home from a hawk. Though might get messy down below.

Yeah, falling wreckage could get dangerous.

... A bunch of quadcopters fly up and hook onto various parts of the other drone, they all shut down their electrical components completely while one discharges an EMP to shut off the big drone's radio receiver, then the rest of the drones power back up and guide the "catch" back to base?

Oh if only FBI and SWAT didn't go completely nuts over something like that happening 

[myrkul]

Would be neat seeing a large drone get swarmed by a small flock of quadcopters, like little birds trying to defend their home from a hawk. Though might get messy down below.

Yeah, falling wreckage could get dangerous.

... A bunch of quadcopters fly up and hook onto various parts of the other drone, they all shut down their electrical components completely while one discharges an EMP to shut off the big drone's radio receiver, then the rest of the drones power back up and guide the "catch" back to base?

Oh if only FBI and SWAT didn't go completely nuts over something like that happening 

Only a matter of time until it, or something like it, does, though.

[dg2010]

LOL at all the privacy nuts going crazy about these things.

If you truly understood the technical capabilities of these things, you probably wouldn't be so afraid.

I have been flying drones for 4 years now and prior to that had cameras on my RC planes for many years. I am qualified and authorized to fly these things legally for commercial reasons throughout Europe.

For a start.... range. Rotor drones typically cannot fly further than about 4km before they run out of juice. Airplanes much further. However the further you fly away, the higher you have to fly to maintain clean "line of sight".  So if you are worried about someone flying over your house and looking in your windows, well he would have to be within a few hundred meters of your house (or on a high platform looking in), in which case they might as well walk by with a camera.

Personally I'm not too worried unless they start changing the law, I'm on the other side of the fence and had to spent quite a few thousand £ to become qualified so I probably won't be affected.

[Rassah]

For a start.... range. Rotor drones typically cannot fly further than about 4km before they run out of juice. Airplanes much further. However the further you fly away, the higher you have to fly to maintain clean "line of sight".  So if you are worried about someone flying over your house and looking in your windows, well he would have to be within a few hundred meters of your house (or on a high platform looking in), in which case they might as well walk by with a camera.

True, the conversation did sort of veer off into the crazy. Sorry about that.

Regarding the OP topic, though, I suspect private drones will not be flown for mile-long distances, and there will likely be cases that involve some private citizens flying them a bit too close for other people's comfort (nosy neighbors and such). I'm not too worried about farmers, surveyors, or search&rescue drones flying a few 1,000 feet above looking for stuff either.

[myrkul]

For a start.... range. Rotor drones typically cannot fly further than about 4km before they run out of juice. Airplanes much further. However the further you fly away, the higher you have to fly to maintain clean "line of sight".  So if you are worried about someone flying over your house and looking in your windows, well he would have to be within a few hundred meters of your house (or on a high platform looking in), in which case they might as well walk by with a camera.

True, the conversation did sort of veer off into the crazy. Sorry about that.

Regarding the OP topic, though, I suspect private drones will not be flown for mile-long distances, and there will likely be cases that involve some private citizens flying them a bit too close for other people's comfort (nosy neighbors and such). I'm not too worried about farmers, surveyors, or search&rescue drones flying a few 1,000 feet above looking for stuff either.

I'm certainly less worried about private drones than I am military ones.

[RodeoX]

There could be a private anti-drone business. This could be great fun until someone loses an eye.

Shooting it down would be fun, but capturing it would be even more fun. It might even be easy to interfere with the control signal and send that plane to the ground.

[myrkul]

There could be a private anti-drone business. This could be great fun until someone loses an eye.

Shooting it down would be fun, but capturing it would be even more fun. It might even be easy to interfere with the control signal and send that plane to the ground.

Relatively cheap, too.
http://www.digitaltrends.com/cool-tech/college-researchers-hack-government-drone-with-1000-gps-spoofer/

[DeathAndTaxes]

it seems google has revealed themselves to be idiotic statists

Not Google ... Google's VERY RICH CEO.  The state protects the ultra-Rich.  In the absence of a state can you imagine what Schmidt would need to spend on private security forces?

[JimmiesForBitcoins]

it seems google has revealed themselves to be idiotic statists

Not Google ... Google's VERY RICH CEO.  The state protects the ultra-Rich.  In the absence of a state can you imagine what Schmidt would need to spend on private security forces?

I reckon probably not much. Likely much less than they pay in taxes to subsidize public military. Who the heck is going to come after Google, state or none? Even if someone wanted to steal all the data, they'd have a much easier time doing it remotely than by breaking into their facilities and jacking up the hardware anyway. Surely their private records aren't just sitting there unencrypted.

So basically it's a question is, "Who would want to steal google's servers?" In which case... There's much easier targets than heavily defended data centers, aren't there? Most of those places are built to withstand natural disasters and not-so-natural ones.

Heck, I'd love to see high tech soldiers with a google patch. That would be badass.

https://i.imgur.com/PnvsUnM.jpg

Though they'd more likely just outsource to security companies.

[myrkul]

it seems google has revealed themselves to be idiotic statists

Not Google ... Google's VERY RICH CEO.  The state protects the ultra-Rich.  In the absence of a state can you imagine what Schmidt would need to spend on private security forces?

I reckon probably not much. Likely much less than they pay in taxes to subsidize public military. Who the heck is going to come after Google, state or none? Even if someone wanted to steal all the data, they'd have a much easier time doing it remotely than by breaking into their facilities and jacking up the hardware anyway. Surely their private records aren't just sitting there unencrypted.

If anyone wants the data, Google is more than willing to sell it to anyone with the money. They've as much as said so - to the government, no less.

No, D&T is speaking of how much they would have to shell out to protect the CEO..

[Phinnaeus Gage]

There could be a private anti-drone business. This could be great fun until someone loses an eye.

Shooting it down would be fun, but capturing it would be even more fun. It might even be easy to interfere with the control signal and send that plane to the ground.

The fun would be short-lived if you don't disconnect its GPS quickly enough. But, if you were able to do that, then hold it for ransom, payable via Bitcoin only.

[Lethn]

It's got to be regulated... It's one thing for governments, who have some legitimacy in what they're doing, but have other people doing it... it's not going to happen.

I think I'm turning into a chaos space marine from warhammer because the second I read this I thought "Loyalist scum!" no person, government entity or even alien or private organisation has the right to spy on me in my own backyard, if people are going to go around buying drones I'm going to find out how to build one specifically to shoot them down, governments can't justify this, they are supposed to protect the people, not spy on everything they're doing.

[myrkul]

It's got to be regulated... It's one thing for governments, who have some legitimacy in what they're doing, but have other people doing it... it's not going to happen.

I think I'm turning into a chaos space marine from warhammer because the second I read this I thought "Loyalist scum!" no person, government entity or even alien or private organisation has the right to spy on me in my own backyard, if people are going to go around buying drones I'm going to find out how to build one specifically to shoot them down, governments can't justify this, they are supposed to protect the people, not spy on everything they're doing.

If they can see it simply by poking their heads over the fence, it's hard to call doing the same from 1000 ft up any different.

There's a reason all my windows have their shades down.

[Rassah]

no person, government entity or even alien or private organisation has the right to spy on me in my own backyard, if people are going to go around buying drones I'm going to find out how to build one specifically to shoot them down, governments can't justify this, they are supposed to protect the people, not spy on everything they're doing.

Hey, you're the one scattering your photons all over the place. Don't want people to spy on you? Don't throw your photons into their back yards.