In less than a month, drone giant DJI faces automatic bans on new sales in the US if a security audit is not completed. With the days ticking down to the December 23 deadline set in the National Defense Authorization Act passed last year, DJI has once again urged leaders to act – and has even suggested using American-made third-party apps for flight.
Last year, Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act, which included a section requiring Chinese drone companies, including DJI and Autel, to pass a security audit or be automatically added to the FCC’s banned products list, which would effectively prevent the sale of new products in the US, including drones, as well as other products like action cameras and gimbals.
At the time, DJI welcomed the review but expressed concern that the legislation failed to determine who would be tackling the task, nor what would happen if the security review never even started. Those initial concerns appear to be valid as the December 23 deadline is approaching, and DJI says, as far as they are aware, the security audit has not yet begun.
In a letter dated December 01, DJI Head of Global Policy Adam Welsh penned letters to several agencies, including the director of the FBI, National Intelligence, National Security Agency, Department of War, and Department of Homeland Security.
DJI’s key stance appears unchanged – saying that “we are confident that DJI products will withstand your scrutiny” – but urges the review process to begin immediately. In the letter, Welsh points out other third-party security audits over the past several years, along with the options for users to control their data.
But, Welsh also notes that users can even choose to use a third-party app to fly entirely, including options from American companies. While DJI Fly is the default to fly the company's drones, users can choose to use a non-DJI app instead. Welsh didn’t name specific apps, but a number of alternatives exist, including San Francisco-based DroneDeploy and Texas-based DroneLink. (Both of which are paid apps.)
In addition, Welsh points to the fact that syncing flight logs to DJI servers isn’t even an option in the DJI app. Local Data Mode allows DJI users to fly without an internet connection at all. Images and videos are not synced with DJI servers “unless a user proactively chooses to do so,” Welsh said.
At the start of 2024, the FBI and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency published cybersecurity guidance that indicated that China-made drones “continue to pose a significant risk to critical infrastructure and US national security.” The report highlights a Chinese law passed in 2017 that requires Chinese companies to provide the government access to its data, regardless of where that data was collected.
DJI has repeatedly welcomed a security audit, saying that it believes its existing security practices will “withstand scrutiny.” Beyond hobbyists and those building a career as a drone pilot, DJI points to the potential bans’ effect on first responders and emergency services. In his letter, Welsh says that more than 80 percent of state and local law enforcement and emergency agencies use DJI drones, which would be “at immediate risk if they no longer have access to the most cost-effective and efficient drone technology available.”
The legislation would put DJI on the FCC Covered List in the US on December 23 if a security review – or a deadline extension – has not been passed. In the meantime, DJI drones remain difficult to purchase in the US due to what the company says is a “customs misunderstanding” preventing new drone shipments from reaching US retailers.
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