U.S. proposed CCP legislation

[Brutalwarpig]

I don't own an Anzu Robotics UAV but I've been considering Anzu and Specta in the event the idiotic legislation becomes law. However, I just read an article on the Drone XL website stating a U.S. Senator from Florida has introduced legislation in the Senate to include the ban in it's version of the NDAA act. Unlike the House version, this proposed addition to the Senate version not only includes DJI but also Autel, Anzu, Specta and any company that DJI licenses it's technology to or has any affiliation with DJI. I am a southern conservative white male in the United States. I've been a republican most of my life. However I am ashamed of my party in regards to this legislation. I own a DJI air 3 with the rc2 controller as well as a DJI Mini 3 with the rc1 controller. I activate everything on a public Wi-Fi hotspot then I delete the MAC address. I always have airplane mode turned on and never connect to any network with the exception of the occasional update which I also use a public Wi-Fi hotspot then delete the MAC address again. All media is stored on microSD cards which are removed before updating. With the exception of someone with it proper equipment nearby where I'm flying my drone that intercepts the drones signal I can think of no way China or anyone else can access my data. There are multiple ways that Congress and mitigate most risks of espionage through technological requirements instead of outright bans. This legislation is xenophobic election year garbage meant to appeal to the relatively small far right segment of the party. Like I said I'm embarrassed to be part of this party in regards to this legislation.

 

[SteveBCH]

When you say "I always have airplane mode turned on", what do you mean by airplane mode? I fly a Phantom 4 RTK and don't own an Air 3 or Mini 3 so am curious what options those newer aircraft have on them. Thanks.

 

[Brutalwarpig]

This is specific to the built in screen RC1, RC2 and RC Pro. Airplane mode on these devices is similar to Airplane mode on a cellphone. However on a cellphone the Airplane mode function disables all transmit functions such as 4G/5G, Bluetooth and wifi. On the RC1, RC2 remotes it's a little different. On these devices Airplane mode disables Bluetooth and Wi-Fi but does not affect the wireless link between UAV and the ground station/RC or, in the case of the Air 3, the Remote I.D. function. My point was since there isn't a cellphone connected to the drone or Remote, and with no stored Wi-Fi MAC address it would be impossible for anyone to covertly obtain flight logs, pics or video from a DJI drone set up in this way. I turn Airplane mode on as an extra layer of security. A logical argument could be made that the DJI Fly app that must be downloaded to a cellphone could have a "backdoor" program hidden in the code that could potentially make it possible for a hostile actor to covertly aquire data from the UAV. With the built in screen RCs configured the way I've mentioned, the only way to aquire data from my drones would be someone who was physically within a few miles from where I was flying my drone would have to have the necessary radio receiver to intercept the signal between the UAV and remote controller.
Instead of banning DJI, or Autel UAVs, the FCC could simply require all drones imported to the U.S. use only the built in screen RC.
I believe this legislation is more about election year political theatrics than any actual threat. I don't believe for one second that our government/FCC hasn't performed many forensic examinations of the Fly app code. This doesn't preclude a backdoor program being introduced in an update but, clearly, there are other, better options than an outright ban.