More and more Americans are becoming leery of the ever-widening use of drones by federal agencies and domestic law enforcement, which is in and of itself disturbing, but increasingly, college students are beginning to get nervous over a rise in drone applications to the Federal Aviation Administration by universities.
As of this writing, more than 30 public universities have applied to the federal government for permits to operate drones, with more expected to apply in the coming months and years. Applicants include the Universities of Alaska, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Florida, Michigan, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin, according to records obtained by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a privacy rights organization.
According to the schools, most are seeking drones for "research purposes," though often colleges are vague about what that "research" will entail.
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Not all permit requests are research-related, the group said. For example, Georgia Tech University applied for a drone permit for three surveillance UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) in 2010. That request was denied by the FAA, but university officials made clear the purpose of the drones on campus would be to "follow individual on foot," Campus Reform reported. The publication went on to report that the drones were being requested by campus police.
That particular use of drones is disconcerting, said Jeschke. Full story...
Related posts:
As of this writing, more than 30 public universities have applied to the federal government for permits to operate drones, with more expected to apply in the coming months and years. Applicants include the Universities of Alaska, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Florida, Michigan, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin, according to records obtained by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a privacy rights organization.
According to the schools, most are seeking drones for "research purposes," though often colleges are vague about what that "research" will entail.
(...)
Not all permit requests are research-related, the group said. For example, Georgia Tech University applied for a drone permit for three surveillance UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) in 2010. That request was denied by the FAA, but university officials made clear the purpose of the drones on campus would be to "follow individual on foot," Campus Reform reported. The publication went on to report that the drones were being requested by campus police.
That particular use of drones is disconcerting, said Jeschke. Full story...
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- US drone spies: if you've nothing to hide, you've nothing to fear,right?
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