New York is testing the use of drones as a public address system

The New York Police Department announced this week that it is testing drones designed to transmit audio messages. Target broadcast safety messages to the city’s population, such as warnings of dangerous weather or emergencies. The first tests were carried out last Sunday (16) after several weeks of heavy rains in New York.

The use of drones is applied in several areas, and the United States is investing heavily in technology. After weeks of heavy rain, the NYPD tweeted that it would begin. “conduct a remotely piloted test of the capabilities of public communicationsOn the same day, a spokesperson for the agency confirmed to AM New York that the tests were being conducted at Hook Creek Park, outside Queens. So far, no information has been released about the results of the trials for delivering security messages using drones.

Police are testing drone messaging

According to the New York City Police Department, one use case for the devices is to broadcast safety messages in areas at risk of flooding, where Drones will help broadcast audio to inform residents about whether to stay home or leave..

Although the idea seems very interesting, Police may face red tapebecause the Public Oversight of Surveillance Technology (POST) Act requires the Department to release an impact statement and use policy 90 days before deploying new surveillance technology. For now, the trials have been conducted using a loophole in the law that allows the deployment of new technologies if they are considered “improvements” on technologies already deployed by the police.

This means that if New Yorkers don’t like the deployment of drones capable of transmitting security messages, they will have to face a lengthy bureaucratic process to get approval for the feature. Including, there are people who believe that the idea will not turn out very well. According to Albert Fox Kahn, executive director of the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, the police decision will frighten citizens. “This plan just won’t get off the ground. The city already has countless ways to reach New Yorkers, and it would take thousands of drones to reach the entire city.“. For now, it is too early to say whether the police plan will be implemented in practice.

Source: Edge

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