Remote-control surveillance aircraft, once a mainstay of science fiction, are becoming increasingly common and more sophisticated. Regulations regarding these devices, also called unmanned aerial vehicles, need to catch up to the technology.
RCMP in sa国际传媒 and elsewhere in the country are using small, camera-equipped aircraft that resemble toy helicopters to record accident scenes and to assist in such things as search-and-rescue operations. They are inexpensive and useful tools, but civil-liberties activists worry that the small aircraft are being used without public consultation.
There鈥檚 no need to panic, but there certainly is reason to be cautious. UAVs are regulated by Transport sa国际传媒 as aircraft, but those regulations focus on UAVs used for commercial, police or research purposes. Model aircraft, which can weigh up to 35 kilograms under the regulations, largely fly under the federal government鈥檚 radar, as they are considered to be recreational.
But one person鈥檚 recreation can be another person鈥檚 spying. As prices go down and capabilities go up, the ability to control an eye in the sky is within almost anyone鈥檚 reach. Already, UAVs the size of hawks (and smaller) and capable of carrying a variety of cameras and sensors are marketed for commercial and military purposes. It won鈥檛 be long before these, or ones like them, are easily available to anyone who wants one.
We don鈥檛 advocate clamping down on the technology 鈥� these are amazing tools that can be valuable in a wide range of fields 鈥� but regulations should ensure they are used ethically and without violating privacy.
Without those safeguards, it could be more than Big Brother who is watching you.
