DJI solemnly declares: There is no risk of data leakage!

A strong slap in the face of US accusations!

Recently, in response to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Homeland Security Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA)'s allegations that DJI drones pose a "data leakage risk" and may transmit American user information to the Chinese government, DJI issued a statement in response!

DJI said that the company always puts user data privacy as the highest priority. There is no so-called automatic data transmission, and users can fully control their privacy.

However, this is not the first time that DJI has faced data security questions. Its drone products have appeared on the US government's blacklist many times. Against the backdrop of geopolitical tensions, will DJI's market trust be shaken by "unfounded accusations"?

Drones encounter political turmoil

Founded in 2006, DJI is now the world's leading drone company, with its products accounting for more than 70% of the market share. It is "far ahead" in the drone industry and a walking "golden signboard" of China's intelligent manufacturing.

However, since 2018, DJI has frequently appeared on the US government's sanctions list, prohibiting federal government departments from purchasing and using DJI's drone equipment on the grounds of "protecting national security."

And on December 22 last year, US President Biden signed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024, which strictly prohibits federal agencies from using Chinese-made drones. Considering DJI's position in the Chinese and global markets, although the United States has extended the scope of sanctions to the entire country, DJI, as the "big brother", will definitely bear the brunt.

The security threats that the United States "created out of thin air" actually stem from the United States' vigilance against the rise of China's technology.

In their view, DJI represents the rising strength of China's technology industry, and its 70% market share is enough to make Americans wary and target it. Therefore, "data privacy" has become the argument for the United States to crack down on DJI, and imposing tariffs has become a means to curb DJI's growth.

It should be pointed out that, to date, the US government has not provided any substantive evidence that DJI has data security issues. Previous accusations were mostly based on the assumption that "it is possible", and reports from US scientific research institutions have also proven that DJI did not steal data. The military still spontaneously purchases and uses the data, which is a case of "one's own people fighting one's own people".

Statement response: There is no risk of data leakage

DJI said it places data privacy at the highest level and guarantees that customers can control the use of their data. At present, competitors are using unfair means to incite xenophobia to eliminate market competition, but the fact is that DJI drones fully comply with regulatory requirements and have adopted industry standards outlined by the FBI, so there is no risk of data leakage.

The specific statement is as follows:

Fact 1: DJI pioneered the market for flying civilian and commercial drones nearly two decades ago and has invested heavily in safety and security and in expanding user privacy controls on its products.

Fact 2: Customers will only share flight logs, images or videos with us with their explicit consent; there is no so-called “automatic transmission of data”.

Fact 3: Operators of our consumer and enterprise drones can choose to fly offline via Local Data Mode, ensuring that unauthorized third parties cannot access their drone data.

Fact 4: Since 2017, we have regularly submitted our products for third-party security audits and certifications. These US and European cybersecurity experts purchase our products off the shelf and conduct independent reviews. Their findings validate that we provide best-in-class data security and privacy protection.

In addition, DJI also mentioned that the DJI Core Crypto Engine used in its own drones obtained the NIST FIPS 140-2 official security certification in 2022, and DJI's DJI FlightHub 2 also recently obtained the ISO 27001 certification provided by the British Standards Institution.

Last words

Although the US's accusations against DJI are groundless, this does not mean that there are no problems with the current state of the drone industry.

Ultimately, consumers' concerns about DJI and the entire industry, and the reason why drone data security issues have become a focus, all stem from the fact that unified and transparent industry data collection and use standards have not yet been established in this field.

Drone technology is in a period of rapid development, and data applications will inevitably expand significantly. If the current situation continues, it will be difficult to eliminate suspicion based on individual company statements. Of course, ideally, different countries should reach a consensus and promote the establishment of data standards with cross-border effectiveness to jointly promote industry progress.