Drone stalking several women in rural Port Lincoln community part of growing list of UAV concerns
Drone stalking several women in rural Port Lincoln
community part of growing list of UAV concerns
ABC West Coast SA Updated Thu at 7:13pm
A hand-written
sign stuck in a window reads: "I am filming you too, sucked in
(censored)". Trees are reflected in the window.
PHOTO: One of the women who has seen the drone near her
window has a clear message for its pilot. (Supplied: Anonymous)
A group of women living in a rural setting near Port
Lincoln on South Australia's Eyre Peninsula have been woken at night by a drone
looking into their homes.
Police are yet to find the offender, and some of the
women have told the ABC they are living in constant fear of another visit which
usually happens late at night or very early morning.
One of the women, who like the rest of the group did not
want to be identified, was asleep and alone at home on her relatively remote
hobby farm.
She was woken by a bang on her bedroom window and when
she looked out into the darkness was confronted by a camera attached to a
drone, hovering within centimetres of her window.
"I feel violated, feel it's intrusive and feel
scared, intimidated," she said.
With a partner often away on a FIFO job, the 39-year-old
says she is forced to keep her curtains drawn.
She has spoken of the profound changes that being stalked
in this manner has brought to her previously peaceful life.
It is at the point where two of the stalked women no
longer shower at night for fear of being filmed.
Another drone-stalked woman has told the ABC of the
anxiety and panic she's now experiencing at night.
"You'll hear a noise and even if it's not a drone
you just get paranoid," the 40-year-old said.
"It's got the point where I now sleep with a large
wooden bat in my bed."
Local police have issued a warning that drones cannot be
used at night and they cannot be within 30 metres of people.
They said complaints can be made on the Civil Aviation
Safety Authority (CASA) website.
We asked if you thought Australia needed tougher drone
laws. Read the discussion in the comments.
Inquiry foreshadows tougher laws
What is happening to the group of women is symbolic of a
broader problem facing regulators of an emerging technology that has the
potential to do incredible good and incredible harm.
Western Australian Labor Senator Glenn Sterle is chair of
a Senate inquiry into drone usage.
While the committee is not due to report until December,
Senator Sterle says it is inevitable there will be recommendations for much
tougher regulation of drones.
"We've been inundated with examples of drones
falling onto the Sydney Harbour Bridge, landing on cars, being used for
surveillance through people's windows, zapping around public spaces," he
said.
"There's been 170-180 interactions between aircraft
around airports in the last 12 months. Hence it's been a rather interesting
inquiry."
Among myriad concerns is the potential for a rogue drone
operator to attack at a public event — given their ability to release
potentially dangerous materials from a height.
"In the wrong hands what could that do over the MCG
on a Grand Final day?" said Senator Sterle.
"Now I know it sounds alarmist but this is the sort
of stuff that we as a nation should be absolutely forefront in our minds.
"We can't even tell who even owns these drones, that
is the problem. There is no compulsory requirement that these things are
identifiable."
Another issue is the potential use of drones by criminals
to stake-out people's houses.
Corrective Services NSW has labelled drones an emerging
issue, with a recent case at Lithgow prison in which a drone was caught on CCTV
dropping what appears to be contraband.
Senator Sterle recognises the value of drones in the
right hands.
"Firefighting, sea search and rescue and agriculture
— no problem — we want to support that part of the drone requirements," he
said.
"But by the same token we cannot put our hand over
one eye and say 'she'll be right, nothing to see here, move along'."
CASA tightening up
One organisation receiving flak for the regulation, or
lack of regulation, of drones has been the Civil Aviation Safety Authority.
CASA spokesman Peter Gibson counters by saying the
authority has recently toughened up drone regulations in response to community
concerns.
He said Australia has been a world leader in drone safety
regulation and CASA is running a complete review of drone safety rules which
could see even tougher requirements.
"Get the balance right between protecting public
safety, at the same time not in any way trying to put undue constraints on what
is a growing industry in its own right," Mr Gibson said.
"People get a lot of fun out of flying their
drones."
A similar argument for balance comes from Australia's
peak body covering the operation of drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
The president of the Australian Certified UAV Operators
Association, Joe Urli, said it is not just a regulation issue for CASA, but for
police and local councils.
"The sheer number of drones that are being imported
and operating in Australia is increasing," he said.
"People are using them now to transport contraband
into prisons and possibly weapons into prisons, so there's many areas that are
affected by this technology."
Back on Eyre Peninsula, one of the drone-stalked women
said she backs a tougher approach to an issue that has been deeply affecting
her life.
"I just want to go back to not being scared in my
own house anymore," she said.
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