Teledyne FLIR's 2024 survey reveals heightened focus on data privacy, security, and the regulatory impact of drone origins, as public safety and industrial sectors seek compliant and secure alternatives.
Data security, data privacy, and country of origin for uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) remain important issues for public safety and industrial-focused professionals based in the United States. That’s according to the 2024 Teledyne FLIR drone survey (“Survey”) of 629 drone professionals across both industries conducted by Teledyne FLIR, LLC (see Survey Methodology).
Among these professionals, worries about data security and privacy remain heightened. The survey found that 85 percent of respondents said “data security of the drone” was very or somewhat important when selecting a drone platform, consistent with the response from the 2023 survey. Regarding collected flight data and imagery, 89 percent of respondents agreed or somewhat agreed that they want to choose whether data is sent to the cloud.
Approximately half (49 percent) of the survey respondents’ organizations have been impacted by recently enacted legislation or proposed legislation, rulings, advisories, or guidance from U.S. local, state, and Federal Government entities involving the regulation of drones originating from countries of concern. As regulations regarding drone use and data privacy continue to take shape, 60 percent of respondents to the 2024 survey ranked a drone’s “country of origin” as somewhat to very important. Of the 629 surveyed, 23 percent are now actively seeking alternative drone options.
Going further, 68 percent of respondents expressed some level of concern that data captured by their respective drone programs might be accessible to foreign governments or other entities that might be considered hostile to their organization/work; this represents a one-percent increase from the 2023 survey.
“Both industrial and public safety professionals continue to express concern over data security and privacy, which explains why a significant majority of respondents want more choice regarding how their drone-collected data is handled,” said Mike Walters, vice president, Teledyne FLIR. “Drone professionals are also recognizing the need to adapt to enacted or proposed regulations that require a transition away from drone platforms originating from countries of concern; nearly a quarter of respondents are now actively seeking alternatives.”
As the regulatory landscape continues to evolve, public safety and critical infrastructure inspection personnel involved with drones must be educated on the latest regulations and considered legislation, and to understand what effective yet affordable alternative options exist.
With the onset of regulations affecting existing drone programs across the USA, government agencies are also providing grants and other types of financial support to enable drone professionals to replace drones originating from countries of concern, including the BJA FY24 Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program. State agencies are also providing funds to replace non-compliant drones, such as the Drone Replacement Program (DRP) from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.