I actually posted something about this kind of thing recently but it looks like somebody else beat me to it!
When it comes to the potential for consumer drones to wreak havoc, experts have sounded the alarm for at least six years, saying that their broad availability and capabilities provide opportunity for bad actors. In 2018, an explosives-laden drone carried out an apparent assassination attempt on Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro.
Yeah I wonder who did that? :thinky-felix:
Remember that time a single transformer going out blew the US East-coast power grid from Florida to Canada? Cause I think about that a lot.
What on earth how is this the most wealthy empire in history of all human kind?
They're the kids in Age of Empires who made all their workers dig gold then didn't spend it on improvements and just sat on it for the entire game.
Stop, you're going to give me a priapism from just thinking about it
It was probably done by some crypto trader who wanted to take out a big mining network or something so they could buy at a lower price 🤪
Guerilla version of this: https://cyberarms.wordpress.com/2010/04/28/the-weapon-that-disabled-iraqs-power-grid/
Me when reading about adventurist violence: This is counterrvolutionary psyop nonsense
Me when imagining DIY drones disrupting pipeline construction: 😳
Good thing that the US power grid is well-maintained and built to be resilient so local disruptions won't cause system-wide problems.
https://archive.md/Pp8b3 kinda surprising they haven't caught the guy. Anyone know why removing the camera would make it harder?
I remember once talking with an engineer, and he was rqgging on the US electric infrastructure, he said: "their infrastructure is old and they literally have no redundancies, because that would be communism, so if anyone destroys any part of the system (insulation on towers, transformers, etc.) the consequences are much more horrible than in a normal country" He also talked about how mafia-like dealing with US bureocracy was.
I honestly have forgotten the exact stuff, but I you had to sent blueprints and everything in obscure US formats or they would end up not accepted and everything needed to be in fax or post something equally strange, i guess the mafia-like refers to personal interactions.
Just like the manufacturers of pickup trucks or mobile phones, we have almost no ability to control what people do with their drones once they have them
Interesting comparing cell phones and cars to weaponized drones. Cell phones could be used as a part of a detonator, but are otherwise unable to cause much physical damage. I guess you could try and make the battery explode but that would be asking to get your fingers blown off in your garage.
Cars, on the other hand, have their VIN etched all over the car and hard coded into 3 separate computers in most cars on the road today. So while they have major potential to be violent, they are significantly more traceable. You also can’t DIY a car and your ability to DIY a cell phone is minimal and still contingent on finding a cell provider
Basically, drones are in a pretty unique position in terms of affordability, trackability, and relative simplicity
This is a really good point. It will be interesting to see how radicals (on both the left and the right) start to utilize this infant technology.
Ten or fifteen years ago a guy made a cruise missile with a couple hundred mile range and GPS guidance in his garage for a few hundred bucks, then tried to get in touch with the government of I think it was Australia to say "Hey this is a real fucking problem you can make cruise missiles easily with off the shelf products!" but no one talked to him so he made a website about it.
Either way, sounds like that bird has thoroughly come home to roost.
Consumer grade GPS electronics are usually engineered to stop functioning above like 300 mph to prevent exactly this from occurring.
I will ask no further questions here, though I do have a few!
"And they never found out who did it."
That's the happy ending I was looking for.
I’m waiting for another Texas freeze to happen and knock out the power. Normal stuff. No biggie.
I hope you have your seven days of food and water supplies ready! Lmao
Weird to use an acronym in the subtitle but never use it once in the article. UAS?
Edit: ok, unmanned aircraft systems. Still tho.
It's a weird industry term that hasn't caught on in popular lexicon
