DHS built domestic surveillance tech into Predator drones

Homeland Security's specifications say drones must be able to detect whether a civilian is armed. Also specified: "signals interception" and "direction finding" for electronic surveillance.

by Declan McCullagh
March 2, 2013 11:30 AM PST

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has customized its Predator drones, originally built for overseas military operations, to carry out at-home surveillance tasks that have civil libertarians worried: identifying civilians carrying guns and tracking their cell phones, government documents show.

The documents provide more details about the surveillance capabilities of the department's unmanned Predator B drones, which are primarily used to patrol the United States' northern and southern borders but have been pressed into service on behalf of a growing number of law enforcement agencies including the FBI, the Secret Service, the Texas Rangers, and local police.

Homeland Security's specifications for its drones, built by San Diego-based General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, say they "shall be capable of identifying a standing human being at night as likely armed or not," meaning carrying a shotgun or rifle. They also specify "signals interception" technology that can capture communications in the frequency ranges used by mobile phones, and "direction finding" technology that can identify the locations of mobile devices or two-way radios.
Read More>http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-57...edator-drones/

Any privacy that we ever thought we had a right to is gone now.

http://im.ft-static.com/content/imag...4a5d2d95af.img

We are in for some mighty interesting times in the not too distant future I think.

This is one of things we have all worried about, from the founding fathers to the present:

What happens when Statists get into orifice with all of our might and power and technology at their disposal to use against the citizenry?

I say, we should be worried when we see how the deck is currently stacked. At least from my view we have 2 parties (one of them with a bull horn called the 'media') who (the leadership) do as they please. 1) Democrats = Which are Statists and 2) Republicans (rinos) = Who are Neo-Statists.

At what point do we know that we are no longer citizens but subjects? I'd say 0bamacare is the beginning of the end. Add the drones and the new anti-patriotic domestic policies. Indoctrinate the young ones. Release the criminal elements of the illegal immigrants from the prisons. And now more and more Rep Governors are falling behind our new King (ready to rule from day one) solidifying his power.

Its a very toxic cocktail and the damage may be irreversible at this point with an 'opposing' party thats afraid of its own shadow.

I don't worry about this sort of thing.

In fact, I would like to be able to tell if someone walking through the desert in the middle of the night was carrying a rifle or not.
Tracking cell phones? Track mine. I don't care.

But some guy named Ahmed, who is carrying an AK 47 while walking North from Nogales? I'm in favor of being able to follow him without him knowing it.

And is the country going to get so backward that it takes such an interest in me loading up my car to go hunting, or in the act of hunting that it feels compelled to take me out with a missile? No.

On the other hand, Homeland Security itself was a bad idea. That job should have gone to Border Patrol.

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Originally Posted by Rockntractor

Any privacy that we ever thought we had a right to is gone now.

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I am not saying or doing anything illegal so I am not really worried about it....

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Originally Posted by PeterS

I am not saying or doing anything illegal so I am not really worried about it....

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You say that now. What happens when they move the goal posts making one of your typical activities "illegal"? It's the slippery slope you need to be concerned about. One day you might very well be on the wrong side of the law.

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Originally Posted by Starbuck

I don't worry about this sort of thing.

In fact, I would like to be able to tell if someone walking through the desert in the middle of the night was carrying a rifle or not.
Tracking cell phones?

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You really think they care what illegals are doing in this country?

Slippery slope? Overused term, sometimes. But I wish they had used it back when income tax was established in 1913, and only 1% paid any.

But I think over regulating drones is a slippery slope. The Seattle PD turned theirs in. I don't think that's a good idea. Next thing you know the cops won't be able to use binoculars, or bullets that exceed 2000 ft/sec, or cars that can go faster than 65 MPH.

Drone hysteria jumps party lines, so I think it'll be talked about for a long, long time. In the end, the bad guys will win, probably.

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Originally Posted by Starbuck

Slippery slope? Overused term, sometimes. But I wish they had used it back when income tax was established in 1913, and only 1% paid any.

But I think over regulating drones is a slippery slope. The Seattle PD turned theirs in. I don't think that's a good idea. Next thing you know the cops won't be able to use binoculars, or bullets that exceed 2000 ft/sec, or cars that can go faster than 65 MPH.

Drone hysteria jumps party lines, so I think it'll be talked about for a long, long time. In the end, the bad guys will win, probably.

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You are like most Americans, yours would be considered the majority view.
When the time comes you will willingly hand in your guns without resistance, you will likely save them a trip and drive them to a pick-up point, When speech becomes curbed you will carefully study the offensive words list as to not mistakenly use one, you like most law abiding citizens will obey any and all new laws without any open complaint.
I'm glad our forefathers weren't like you.