How DJI Drones Broadcast Your Location to Others

Commercial quadcopters have been a topic of concern when it comes to public safety, especially in regards to keeping them away from airports. To address this issue, some large drone companies have voluntarily added geofencing and tracking mechanisms to their drones. DJI, for example, has implemented DroneID, which is a beacon on the drone that sends out data, including the operator’s GPS location.

DJI also sells the Aeroscope device, which receives and decodes DroneID data for government use.

However, it has been discovered that the DroneID data is not encrypted, despite DJI’s claims in 2022 that it was. Security researchers have found that the data is easily accessible and can be decoded using an SDR dongle. This has raised concerns about the compromise of privacy for drone operators.

Additionally, off-the-shelf quadcopters, including those made by DJI, have been used in the Russo-Ukrainian War, leading to DJI cutting sales to both Russia and Ukraine. It appears that companies like DJI are no longer standing up against anti-copter talking points and are setting an example of how devices can subvert their owners’ privacy without reservation.

It may be up to hackers to learn how to excise DroneID, as they have done with other DJI limitations in the past.