Armed with knowledge of an eloquent cost-benefit model offered by Occam’s razor, and the existence of a burgeoning and evolving affordable microchip industry, the Chinese military is harnessing the force of the US retail market to effectively advance intelligence gathering efforts in North America.
The latest Trojan horse and culprit for the incessant global data collection appetite of the People’s Liberation Army, of course is one of the hottest selling drones in the retail world. The sleek class of self-flying aircraft navigated by sophisticated GPS applications and devices, feature high definition video and image capturing capabilities. Ownership in the US has become so overwhelming popular, that the Federal Aviation Administration was forced to adopt policy in an effort to keep track of the crowded skies, and high security installations have installed anti-drone defense infrastructures. With the 2017 Holiday shopping spree operating at a chaotic and profitable class five white water rapid of frenzied spending, consumers of electronics manufactured in China, are possibly inadvertently contributing to the gamesmanship of Beijing’s offensive in the international spy game. Smile. Your neighborhood is on HD camera.
Forbes.com alerts the digital gadget connoisseur to the plausible scenario that a renowned brand of UAV’s, was/is armed with technology to transmit end user data directly into the server storage banks of the company, as a chilling precursor to offering the information as product to the highest bidder. Apparently, the popular line of DJI drones, including the best selling Phantom series, which on the positive side has spurred innovative development in a number of key industries and markets, act as a metaphorical supply chain for aerial photos, GPS specifics and operator preferences, including personal information from Droid based devices, that is sold directly to Beijing. The company vehemently denies the allegations, which surfaced through an unclassified document. According to the DJI website, the company is based in Shenzhen, China, which is the country’s equivalent to California’s Silicon Valley.
Though the claims as to exact involvement or role of the company into the trafficking of data have yet to be officially validated, the scenario sends a blatant warning shot to the West, that the infestation of spyware and aggressive campaigns to deliberately hijack information is simply not confined to drones and quite possibly spans to the entire spectrum of the electronic consumer marketplace. This unsettling and dangerous idea is only exacerbated by the passiveness of the younger generations in regards to the vigilant protection and preservation of the concept of privacy.
According to information within the leaked document, the breadth of DJI drones serving US government and commerce applications, spans across at least ten large scale organizations, with the potential amount of compromised data reaching epic proportions and heightening security concerns. The ruling brass of the PLA knows that it cannot survive a direct military operation against US armed forces, and the bold play to bring the theater of battle within espionage directly to the vortex of the digital realm and consumer electronics needs to be taken quite seriously.
Read the Forbes.com story here.
