Brakes put on airborne perverts spying on neighbours with drones
MILES KEMP
THE increasing use of unmanned spy drones filming people in their own backyards has sparked demands for a change in legislation.
The Privacy Committee of South Australia wants “inadequate” laws updated to keep pace with rapid advances in technology being misused, but and which is not covered in legislation which dates back to 1972 and which has barely changed since.
It is currently legal for remote-control spy drones to film while hovering over beaches,neighbouring houses and swimming pools.
The drones can be purchased for as little as $100 at many stores in SA.
“In many respects the privacy committee now considers the current act to be inadequate to address the threat that these surveillance technologies pose to privacy,” a spokesman told The Advertiser.
The burgeoning drone industry estimates about 100 new drones are taking to the skies over Australia each week, and while the Civil Aviation Safety Authority recorded only 33 licensed commercial operators at the end of May, there are now 55.
Executive director of the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems Australia Peggy MacTavish, said the commercial industry was heavily regulated by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority.
The organisation has signed up 200 commercial members in 18 months.
“We try to educate hobbyists and industry, because they need to be aware of and adhere to the rules,” she said.
“This is a greater educational undertaking than we thought for hobbyists because people think they can buy these things off the shelf and fly them wherever, and that is not the case.
“Most true hobbyists are members of organisations which are well aware of the rules but many people, because of how available these products are off the shelf, are not necessarily aware of what rules govern them.”
The SA Privacy Committee, which believes drone surveillance can have a “chilling effect on the behaviour of individuals”, rejected an interview request.
A spokesman confirmed in a written statement the issue had been raised last month with the Legislative Review Committee of State Parliament which is looking into the problem.
“The emergence of new optical surveillance technologies, such as drone technology with high definition cameras, presents new threats to individual privacy of an individual’s home,” he said.
“The privacy committee has raised concerns about the potential impact of covert video surveillance by private drones in its submission to the legislative review committee review.”
It has been 12 months since the Legislative Council blocked legislation which was designed to update the law, and instead set up an inquiry.
A copy of the warning provided to The Advertiser shows the privacy committee believes the surveillance can have a “chilling effect on the behaviour of individuals”.
Director of CSIRO’s autonomous systems lab, Jonathan Roberts, said there were thousands of hobbyists with drones capable of filming, but the aircraft also had many potentially lifesaving uses, especially by emergency services when approaching dangerous situations. “Like any new technology it can be used in all sorts of ways,” he said.
Other breaches of privacy which the committee has warned are currently legal include:
CCTV filming by councils inside public toilets.
SURVEILLANCE data devices used to track information going to or from a computer or network.
TRACKING devices which could show where someone’s mobile phone is – for example, at an alcoholics anonymous meeting or a sexual health clinic.
GPS devices which could be used by violent partners to track a victim’s car.
FILMING without consent except for private conversations, private acts or if the subject was in a state of undress.
DISTRIBUTING the vision to others, including via the internet.
RETAINING the vision for private uses, including for a long period of time.
