Washington / 19.01.2021 15:51:09
President Donald Trump yesterday signed an executive order in which he asked US agencies to assess any security risks of the drones made in China in government fleets and prioritize their removal.
Trump directed all US agencies to describe the security risks they pose to the existing government drone fleet, devices built by Chinese companies or by other countries considered foreign adversaries, including Russia, Iran and North Korea.
The still president also asked the agencies to describe “potential steps that could be taken to mitigate these risks, including, if warranted, discontinuing all federal use of covered (drones) and rapid removal from federal service.”
Last month, the US Department of Commerce added the Chinese company SZ DJI Technology Co, the world’s largest drone manufacturer, has been blacklisted by the US government, along with dozens of other Chinese companies.
In January 2020, the US Department of the Interior grounded its fleet of about 800 Chinese-made drones, but said it would allow their use in emergency situations.
The United States Secretary of the Interior, David Bernhardt, ordered the department last October to halt additional purchases of drones made in China.
In May 2019, the US Department of Homeland Security warned US companies about the risks to company data from drones made in China. In an advisory, DHS said that U.S. officials have
“Strong concerns about any technological product that brings US data into the territory of an authoritarian state that allows its intelligence services to have unlimited access to that data or that abuses that access.”
DJI said last month that it was disappointed by the Commerce Department’s decision, but noted that “customers in the United States can continue to buy and use DJI products as normal.”
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