This Hacker Tool Can Pinpoint a DJI Drone Operator’s Exact Location

That DroneID system was designed to allow governments, regulators, and law enforcement to monitor drones and prevent their abuse. The researchers’ discovery—and their public tool—provide new evidence of the serious privacy and operational security concerns DroneID presents for operators, especially considering that DJI drones are now often used in war zones, where revealing a drone operator’s location can draw enemy fire. Whether you’re privacy-minded or you’re in a conflict zone, nasty stuff can happen.” DJI’s DroneID became the subject of controversy last spring when the Ukrainian government criticized the company because Russian military forces were using DJI drones for their missile targeting and using the radio signals broadcast from Ukraine’s own DJI drones to locate Ukrainian military personnel. China-based DJI has long sold a suitcase-sized device called Aeroscope to government regulators and law enforcement agencies that allows them to receive and decode DroneID data, determining the location of any drone and its operator from as far as 30 miles away. DJI’s DroneID and Aeroscope devices are advertised for civilian security uses, like preventing disruptions of airport runways, protecting public events, and detecting efforts to smuggle cargo into prisons.