The Professional Society of Drone Journalists

2001 Sheffield Road

Oklahoma City, OK 73210
Dronejournalism.org

Dear Ms. Mason,

I am responding to your request to submit evidence to the House Internal Market, Infrastructure
and Employment Sub-Committee of the House of Lords European Union Committee, to assist
their investigation of the civil use of Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems in the European Union.

The Professional Society of Drone Journalists (PSDJ) is honored to be considered by the House
of Lords committee for this purpose, and greatly appreciates the opportunity to engage in the
conversation on civil use of RPAS. The PSDJ is a not-for-profit association of journalists,
engineers, educators, and filmmakers who seek to develop and/or use RPAS to augment news
reporting worldwide. To date, we have more than 343 members from 47 countries. Twenty-two
members live in the European Union, including eight members who reside in the United
Kingdom.

Our organization was founded in 2011 with the goal of establishing the ethical, educational and
technological framework for the emerging field of drone journalism. Over the past four years,
weve increased awareness through numerous presentations and outreach opportunities,
developed a code of ethics for drone journalism, provided training of RPAS to many individuals,
and have conducted ourselves as responsible professionals in our respective countries.

Our bylaws, signed by the PSDJ Board of Directors in January 2014, officially defined our
purpose in three domains: fostering the development and safe operation of unmanned vehicles
for journalistic purposes; furthering the adoption of unmanned vehicles by the press through
education, outreach, and promotion; and advocating freedom of responsible and ethical use of
unmanned vehicles by journalists. As such, we are pleased to provide experiential knowledge
and professional opinion in the pursuit of effective regulation of civilian RPAS.

We have carefully examined the questions and have selected to respond to those which we feel
the most expertise to answer confidently and authoritatively. I hope the following answers to
your questions provide good information for the House of Lords, and I wish the Right
Honourable Members of the Sub-Committee the best in their pursuit of equitable and safe RPAS
regulations.

Sincerely,

Matthew Schroyer,
Founder and President,
Professional Society of Drone Journalists
mschroyer@gmail.com


Ian Hannah,
Owner, Avrobotics
Director of Operations, Industrial Skyworks
Vice President,
Professional Society of Drone Journalists
irhannah@outlook.com
Monday, September 29, 2014
Do you agree with the priorities identified in the European Commissions Communication
for opening the aviation market to the civil use of RPAS? Are there other priorities which
should have been included?

The Communication from the European Commission
1
, adopted 8 April 2014, states clearly that
safety is the paramount objective of EU aviation policy. The greatest challenge in creating rules
that proportionately reflect the risk of the various types of RPAS operations, according to the
Commission, is taking into account weight, speed, complexity, airspace class and place or
specificity of operations. Further, the Commission notes in this Communication that RPAS are
a segment of aerospace technology that encompasses an enormous range of aircraft, in terms of
size, capability, and complexity.

This is an appropriate priority; safety of the public has the greatest weight when comparing all
relevant considerations around civil use of RPAS. Large news organizations may in the future
desire aircraft with complex abilities, such as being able to fly hundreds of miles from the station
of control, hovering or loitering for an hour or longer, or flying at an altitude such that it is
necessary to sense and avoid air traffic
2
. However, for the foreseeable future, most news
organizations and individual journalists seek to use small RPAS, which typically fly under a mile
from the operator, fly for perhaps 20 minutes at most, and are designed to operate below the
minimum safe altitude for manned aircraft.

The risk to harm with small RPAS is greatly decreased when compared to traditional manned
news helicopters
3
, which weigh thousands of pounds and carry hundreds of pounds of flammable
liquid during flights
4
. Small RPAS operators lack these risks, and so the expectation of licensure
and certification should not be the same as larger, manned aircraft. At the same time, it is
reasonable to require some kind of licensure to ensure that RPAS operations are being conducted
only by those who can competently manage small unmanned aircraft in a dynamic environment.

Following the issue of safety, privacy is addressed, specifically the right to private and family
life, and the protection of personal data. The greatest concern with regard to privacy is the use
of RPAS as surveillance devices, which may collect sensitive data about people and families,
which may be distributed by electronic means.

Given recent scandals amongst members of the press involving hacking and bribery
5
, the public
is understandably concerned that similar mal-content individuals might prey on the public using
RPAS. However, regulators must consider deeply whether certain privacy-minded regulations
would unjustifiably interfere with the duty of the press to inform the public through their use
RPAS to capture and disseminate knowledge about critical events, or to uncover malfeasance
and injustice.


1
http://ec.europa.eu/transport/modes/air/doc/com%282014%29207_en.pdf
2
http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/61816/will-drones-take-flight-for-tv-stations/page/1
3
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/News-helicopter-crashes-burns-beside-Space-Needle-250790281.html
4
http://airbushelicoptersinc.com/products/AS350B2-specifications.asp
5
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-11195407
Monday, September 29, 2014
RPAS, even at this early stage in development, have already proven effective in uncovering
contamination of public waterways
6
, revealing the impacts of natural and man-made disasters
7
,
and providing documentation of important political movements
8
. Overly-burdensome regulations
not only would hamper the ability for journalists to report on these issues, but also would restrict
the public from receiving vital information.

In general, the freedom of the press can be preserved by guaranteeing permission to fly small
RPAS, in a responsible manner, at sufficiently low altitudes over public land. The issue of
privacy thus is tied to the right of people to make good use of the air above their private land, by
deploying RPAS to monitor and tend to crops, and to image, assess, and track their property.
Therefore, it would behoove the Commission to consider an additional priority to the ones
mentioned: the right for the press and public to have fair and complementary access to the sky.


What are the advantages and disadvantages of regulating RPAS at the national, EU or
international levels, for example in the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)?
Are the EUs actions, proposed or otherwise, consistent with developments in non-EU
countries, for example in the United States?

At this time, there is no consensus in the global aerospace community on how to integrate RPAS
into airspace, or how to regulate the operation of small RPAS. Outside of the EU, each country
seems to be on an independent regulatory path, and few countries seem eager to borrow
regulatory best practices from other countries. Further complicating the issue of international
continuity is the fact that some countries, such as the United States, are internally conflicted
about the current status and direction of RPAS regulations.

One advantage of international consensus on RPAS regulations is that countries are on equal
footing from an economic standpoint. In a world with equal RPAS regulations, developers,
instructors, and operators have economic security knowing that a particular system is legal
wherever it may be operated. From the standpoint of the news industry, unified RPAS
regulations mean journalists can be confident in respond to an event in another country with
RPAS, which in turn ensures the public has access to news on international affairs.

Conversely, non-unified RPAS regulations can be crafted in a manner that protects native
aerospace industry at the expense of the international community. For example, one country
could require expensive but unnecessary electronic features (i.e. ADS-B transponders
9
or
advanced sense-and-avoid capability for small, low-flying aircraft), or have an unreasonable
classification for small RPAS (i.e., restricting certain technologies under laws similar to the US
International Traffic in Arms Regulation).


6
http://www.dronejournalism.org/news/2014/5/plants-blood-dumping-uncovered-by-drone-photos-will-go-without-
felony-charges
7
http://www.dronejournalism.org/news/2014/2/flooding-in-south-western-britain-captured-by-low-flying-drone
8
http://www.dronejournalism.org/news/2013/8/interview-with-a-citizen-drone-journalist-in-istanbul-i-have-been-
witnessing-some-very-bad-things
9
http://www.faa.gov/nextgen/programs/adsb/
Monday, September 29, 2014
Such regulations might protect the interests of large aerospace businesses that are accustomed to
producing military-grade equipment, but would block grassroots RPAS developers and small
businesses from participating in the RPAS economy. This is understood by the European
Commission, which acknowledges in its RPAS Roadmap
10
that the experience of the first
European operators and services providers clearly shows that solid businesses cases require
internationalisation of the activities beyond the national market. Similarly, strict regulations
would deny many end-users access to affordable RPAS equipment and services.

The Commissions RPAS Roadmap additionally anticipated that VLOS flights of small RPAS
would be a daily occurrence between 2014 and 2018, with common rules expected toward the
latter part of the time period. Furthermore, Annex 1 of the Roadmap indicates an emphasis on
quickly resolving the regulation small or light RPAS, especially used in VLOS operations, with
the understanding that below a certain threshold to be determined (e.g. 20-25 Kg or other
criteria) there would be no formal airworthiness processes, but only safety assessment of the
system, under responsibility of the RPAS operator. Specifics are not available at this time, but
broadly speaking, these regulatory intentions, if carried out, would place EU Member States
among the most progressive in the world in terms of small RPAS regulations.

In its own UAS road map, the US Federal Aviation Administration shares some similarities with
the EU roadmap where small or light RPAS are concerned. The US Roadmap
11
indicates that
small RPAS have priority in the rulemaking process, and eventual rules may not require
airworthiness certification for small RPAS flown in a limited range. The US Roadmap shows
intent that the FAA will require classification of sUAS, certification of sUAS pilots, registration
of sUAS, approval of sUAS operations, and sUAS operational limits. The FAA Comprehensive
Plan
12
for UAS integration further notes an intention to require permits for sUAS pilots.

However, should the proposed timeline of the Roadmap, the EU could potentially permit
widespread RPAS use ahead of the US. The US only recently has allowed commercial RPAS
flights under special, restrictive conditions (known as 333 exemptions
13
), despite the vast
differences in risk and skillsets between manned flight, and remotely-operated small UAS flights
within VLOS. The Comprehensive plan originally anticipated routine civil RPAS flights without
special certifications in 2015, but a recent audit of the Federal Aviation Administration found
that regulations for small RPAS are far behind schedule
14
. These two developments do not
inspire confidence that when rules eventually are produced, the US will prove to be as favorable
as the EU for RPAS operations and services.

Canada, meanwhile, is significantly more amenable to small RPAS commercial operators, but
requires a Special Flight Operations Certificate (SFOC), and a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) for
each flight. This document must be submitted at least 20 days before each operation, and is a
significant investment of time for many Canadian RPAS operators. Finally, operators are

10
http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/aerospace/uas/
11
http://www.faa.gov/uas/media/uas_roadmap_2013.pdf
12
https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/agi/reports/media/UAS_Comprehensive_Plan.pdf
13
http://www.dronejournalism.org/news/2014/9/faa-exemptions-require-licensed-pilots-sterile-sets-for-commercial-
uas-use
14
https://www.oig.dot.gov/library-item/31975
Monday, September 29, 2014
required to have a minimum of $10,000 liability insurance coverage
15
. The EU Roadmap seems
to indicate no such paperwork or delay is required for similar operations, which would make the
EU more favorable to commercial RPAS use in this respect.

In looking outside EU Member States for countries where RPAS regulations have balanced the
publics safety and security with a fertile economic climate for businesses, Australia serves as a
useful example. Written into law in 2002, Part 101 of Australias Civil Aviation Safety
Regulations
16
(CASR) requires no special airframe certification, but requires all RPAS pilots
obtain or create an operations manual, risk assessment, flight manual, and maintenance manual
for their aircraft. Pilots obtain a UAV Operators Certificate. Additionally, if conducted over
non-populated areas, individual flights require no special authorization, but RPAS operators may
obtain area approval on a case-by-case basis to fly in populated areas.

In numerous discussions during PSDJ Board of Directors meetings, it has been generally
concluded that Australia has the most beneficial small RPAS regulatory system for journalists,
developers, businesses, and the public at large.

In which new or innovative ways do you think RPAS will be used in the future?

In Considering the future use of RPAS it is worthwhile to note the different categories that RPAS
will fall under, small RPAS under 20-25 kg will find different uses to those in higher weight
categories, and fixed wing RPAS will be used differently than rotor craft. To be able to
understand what uses may occur, its important to understand the different types and capabilities
in these classes. Small RPAS are easily deployed posing little risk under most circumstances
17
,
but may be limited to certain altitudes and line of sight operations
18
. Larger RPAS will be able to
fly higher and have sense and avoid systems
19
and be able to be integrated into the current air
traffic system
20
, and this will give them capabilities beyond line of sight operations.

In all areas of use, RPAS are only as useful as the sensors on board. This ties into the weight
categories, as some of the more sophisticated sensors are still above 10 kg, applications such as
mapping that involve LIDAR may require larger systems to carry them
21
. However, the market is
seeing a massive opportunity in RPAS and is adapting many technologies to be lighter and more
compact and specifically designed for RPAS. At their basic level RPAS are simply data
gathering machines that can gather data quicker and more safely than current methods, in this
regard they can be seen as a disruptive force across a broad range of uses.

Many of the most innovative uses will come in the small RPAS categories, in part because of the
lower cost and easy access of this type of aircraft but also because of the decreased risk. Here the
uses will explode with innovation across a massive range of industries. Most obviously has been

15
http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/regulations/SOR-96-433/FullText.html#s-606.02
16
http://www.casa.gov.au/wcmswr/_assets/main/rules/1998casr/101/101c01.pdf
17
https://www.mitre.org/sites/default/files/pdf/12_2840.pdf
18
http://www.dronejournalism.org/news/2013/11/road-map-gives-hints-of-us-drone-privacy-regulations-to-come
19
http://www.frc.ri.cmu.edu/projects/senseavoid/Images/CMU-RI-TR-08-03.pdf
20
http://www.nasa.gov/centers/armstrong/news/FactSheets/FS-075-DFRC.html#.VCl50BZ0Zrs
21
http://www.int-arch-photogramm-remote-sens-spatial-inf-sci.net/XL-1-W2/87/2013/isprsarchives-XL-1-W2-87-
2013.pdf
Monday, September 29, 2014
the film and broadcast markets, who have already found a multitude of uses for airborne camera
systems
22
. These include, replacement of traditional helicopter work, removing the risk and
reducing both financial and environmental costs. They also add new perspectives to help
storytellers, replacing expensive cranes in movie shoots. In television and new media, RPAS can
be used for breaking news, general news stories, and gathering data that until now journalists
have not been able to access
23
. RPAS may also cover sports events, even inside arenas which
until now has been impossible.

Agriculture is often cited as the first area of effective RPAS use, due mainly to the large
geographic areas involved and the relatively low population density. Using sensors such as
multispectral and hyperspectral cameras, RAPS can be programmed to fly across millions of
hectares of crops, gathering data on the health of every plant. Until recently, this data has been
hard or prohibitively expensive to gather, but RPAS will make it easy and cost effective.

Larger RPAS are currently in use in Japan to spray crops
24
. This replaces the current method of
piloted aircraft flown at low level often considered the most dangerous of all flying jobs
25
. The
use of semi-autonomous RPAS spraying crops is expected to be approved in Australia and
Canada in 2015.

Industry is perhaps the biggest area of RPAS use. Growth here will be an ideal place for novel
and innovative uses in helping industry remove risk from some of their most dangerous work
26
.
For example, a reoccurring requirement for electricity suppliers is to inspect their towers for
damage or corrosion. This currently is a dangerous job, yet easily is replaced by an RPAS, which
can give more accurate data than a person
27
. Similarly, windmill and chimney inspections can
quickly and easily be done, without the costs of having to shut down plants
28
. This really just the
beginning, but its hard not to imagine many industries that will be able to benefit from de-
risking projects. Perhaps the most obvious ones are the jobs currently done by full size aircraft,
such as oil rig inspection, easily replaced by RPAS, pipe line inspections, again often done by
full size aircraft are ideal uses for Beyond VLOS operations. Large and small area mapping
projects can now be done remotely, a small light weight RPAS which poses much less risk
mapping urban areas then the current use of full size helicopters
29
.

Law enforcement and military uses are already underway. Although concerns over these uses are
common, many times the uses have proven to be very effective in the work required of these
intuitions. Search and rescue using RPAS has saved lives by the ability to rapidly deploy a
system out of the back of a police car, rather than call in a full size helicopter, when minutes
mean the difference between life and death
30
. Less dramatically, traffic incidents that can cause

22
http://www.wileyonmedia.com/2014/09/uas-takes-flight-for-film-companies/
23
http://www.dronejournalism.org/news/2014/3/aerial-robots-provide-accurate-independent-data-on-coal-ash-
disaster
24
http://rmax.yamaha-motor.com.au/history
25
http://www.kboi2.com/news/local/21050204.html
26
http://www.engineerlive.com/content/drones-cut-risk-industrial-inspections
27
http://www.aeryon.com/applications/missions/295-hydro-inspection.html
28
http://www.thecyberhawk.com/inspections/utilities/
29
http://www.suasnews.com/2014/08/30842/uas-urban-mapping-for-the-world-bannk/
30
http://www.mentalmunition.com/search/label/search%20and%20rescue
Monday, September 29, 2014
long shut downs of key motorways while accident data is being gathered, and this can now be
quickly mapped with a low cost RPAS, meaning motorways opened in minutes rather than hours,
something now commonly done in Canada.

Mapping has proven to be a very effective use of this technology, low altitude high-resolution
images can easily out preform satellite imagery, geo referenced data allows high-definition
mapping to be easily done. Maps and mapping is becoming more and more important to
everyday life and RPAS could play a key role in the future of cartography.

Environmental issues are well serviced by RPAS, in the Canadian artic RPAS where used to
assess the environmental impact of mining projects
31
, counting the wildlife both in the ocean and
on land, removing the extreme danger of flying over hostile regions. In the same area, RPAS
were used by the mining company to topographically map the area for industrial development
32
.
Other data such as air quality measurement can be now done daily with easily launched RPAS
and on board sensors.
33


In summing up the use of RPAS may replace traditional methods of data gathering, but they are
also being used in ways never possible before, this spirit of innovation will continue as long as
the regulations continue to allow such development. Use of RPAS to deliver life preservers
34
,
using thermal cameras to locate persons at sea is just one example, launched from a boat of from
land an RPAS can quickly deliver a life preserver faster and more accurately than any other
method. RPAS can be used to lift lights for a variety of night time coverage, much more
effective than flares due to their long flight time and directional control.

Rapid Traffic management
35
is another area RPAS can deliver, with the ability to give detailed
imagery for traffic control during national events that require instant feedback on non-typical
traffic routes. RPAS can be used in sport training
36
, allowing instant information to be given to
coaches on movement of players, the moving aerial perspective has proven invaluable to
professional sports teams that have experimented with the technology. Animal herd
management
37
can be carried out, with RPAS being able to see herd stock with thermal cameras,
this technology has proven effective in anti-poaching practices throughout Africa
38
. High
Altitude RPAS are being tested as a way to cheaply replace satellite delivery of internet signals,
allowing low cost transmission to remote areas
39
.


31
http://www.scienceworldreport.com/articles/11716/20131220/global-hawk-uav-in-canadian-arctic-for-first-
time.htm
32
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/technology/tech-news/canadian-technology-and-the-flight-of-the-
drones/article17849259/
33
http://www.energy.ca.gov/2011publications/CEC-500-2011-039/CEC-500-2011-039.pdf
34
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2011-02/22/unmanned-drones-life-jackets
35
http://www.roadsbridges.com/traffic-management-georgia-dot-contemplating-drones-traffic-control
36
http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/10974559/drones-use-ucla-mlb-starting-show-more-sports-fields-coaches-
embrace-technology
37
http://cwf-fcf.org/en/discover-wildlife/resources/online-articles/funding-stories/tracking-wildlife-with-uavs.html
38
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-28132521
39
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2014-03/04/facebook-drones
Monday, September 29, 2014
Delivery by RPAS has already become a reality, despite the news made by Amazon, DHL has
become the first company to regularly use RPAS to delivered medicine to remote areas in
Germany
40
. Delivery by RPAS was met with much skepticism, but may prove to be a critical part
of life for some communities

Given the potential uses of this technology, we can expect rapid growth in RPAS use across all
industries, provided that appropriate regulations will not block these innovations.

What is your view of the estimate by the AeroSpace and Defence Industries Association of
Europe that RPAS activities will create about 150,000 jobs in the EU by 2050? What are
the factors that might restrict the growth of the RPAS market?

The initial estimate by the AeroSpace and Defence Industries Association of Europe is
dependent on two factors: Firstly the consistent overall growth of the RPAS market, Secondly:
The competition between the two other main Markets, namely the North America market and the
Asian market.

The first question on the growth to 2050, every study seen to date projects a rapid increase in
RPAS adoption and growth, number vary from publication but in the United States RPAS
revenues are expected to exceed 8 Billion Dollars per year, with over 100,000 jobs created until
2025
41
. The same growth is expected worldwide with a potentially higher adoption rate and job
growth in China, in part due to the more favorable regulations and labour cost.

Europe has an advanced and successful aerospace industry, whether they can compete globally in
the RPAS market will depend on early adoption and the speed at which regulations can be put in
place across Europe. Presently each country has its own regulation for RPAS use, this is a large
disincentive to opening a successful RPAS operation in Europe. Each countries rules and
regulation for RPAS use, frequency allocation and privacy issue will need to be harmonized to
ensure that companies can operate successfully in each country without the burden of different
regulations and licenses required. There needs to be central body which will oversee a standard
approach to RPAS integration, any slow down or undue red tape at this critical stage will mean
industry and jobs will go elsewhere. The USA has suffered from slow adoption of RPAS
regulation
42
, other countries such as Australia and Canada have moved ahead with several key
companies now operating in these countries. However, the FAA is moving to catch up, and we
expect to see more commercial small RPAS operations in the USA in the next 12 months.

Burdensome regulation will slow down job growth, but also so will any catastrophic accident
involving RPAS and manned aircraft. This would be not isolated to Europe, Asia or North
America. Any incident that would involve the loss of life due to an RPAS would have a ripple
effect across the industry regardless of location, so regulations and enforcement of the

40

http://www.dhl.com/en/press/releases/releases_2014/group/dhl_parcelcopter_launches_initial_operations_for_resear
ch_purposes.html
41
http://auvsi.org/resources/economicreport
42
http://www.computerworld.com/article/2488394/data-privacy/u-s--commercial-drone-industry-struggles-to-take-
off.html
Monday, September 29, 2014
regulations are an important part of the overall growth the industry. We would encourage
reasonable regulations that still take into account the actual risk of a small RPAS unit operated
within visual line of sight.

Other possible risk to growth is the lack of reasonable patent enforcement. This technology is
relatively low cost and in Asian markets Intellectual Property is often disregarded
43
, giving many
new businesses a lack of incentive to continue development. Strong rules regarding design
patents and testing would be an important feature to secure a robust RPAS industry.

Similarly, a clear path for RPAS operators to follow will help in the overall growth. Presently,
most regulations are unclear and hard to find, and this does nothing to help the growth and
hinders development. Many inspectors are poorly trained and have little understanding of RPAS
technology, a comprehensive, clear strategy with specific deadlines for introduction would be
welcome and aid growth.

Are the existing data protection, liability and insurance regimes at EU and Member State
levels sufficient to address the concerns raised by the potential greater use of RPAS, or are
changes required?

The European Unions Data Protection Directive 95/46/EC
44
, adopted in 1995, defined personal
data as any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person, where an
identifiable person can be directly or indirectly identified by one or more characteristics
namely, factors specific to his physical, physiological, mental, economic, cultural or social
identity. Much attention is given in 95/46/EC to the concept of data processing, which should
only be permitted based on transparency, legitimate purpose, and proportionality.

RPAS or drones, being essentially sensor-carrying aerial devices, are used to collect data. The
data may come in many different forms, from still images and video of visual light, to multi- and
hyper-spectral imaging that reveals the chemical nature of the world. The data collected by
RPAS typically is processed by a computer or network of computers, which may take minutes,
hours, or days, depending on the amount of the data and the complexity of computer tasking. The
result of this processing can be any number of data products: information-dense maps, three-
dimensional models, aerial video and photography, among other items. Thus, the processing and
distribution is administered by persons, and is outside the scope of RPAS regulations.

More crucially, Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights
45
, signed 4 November
1950, grants the right to respect for private and family life, his home, and his correspondence.
Naturally, this is balanced with respect to Article 19 of the Convention
46
, which grants the right
to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public
authority and regardless of frontiers. Rights in both Articles are subject to restriction based on
the needs of a democratic society.


43
http://hbr.org/2012/03/us-competitiveness-and-the-chinese-challenge/ar/1
44
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:31995L0046:en:HTML
45
http://conventions.coe.int/treaty/en/treaties/html/005.htm
46
http://www.theguardian.com/media/2002/mar/27/pressandpublishing.privacy4
Monday, September 29, 2014
Given these foundational documents and the rich case law history, the EU has the means to
protect privacy while ensuring the function of a press in a democratic society. RPAS are a
powerful, useful tool that can uncover pollution, oppression, and corruption, but exploit no
special loophole in existing rights or laws. RPAS users may still be prosecuted and face fines or
imprisonment should they use their technologies unjustly, as with any other technology. As such,
the EU is sufficiently prepared to address concerns presented by RPAS.