Media: Lithuanian army and services use unsafe Chinese drones

 "Lithuanian intelligence, the army, the police and the State Border Guard Service are using Chinese DJI drones, as there is growing evidence that they can carry out intelligence for third countries," - the LRT Research Division said.

According to the news portal, government agencies have hundreds of these Chinese drones, used for incident intelligence, traffic and border control, fires, nature surveillance and military exercises, although there is growing evidence in the West that DJI collects critical infrastructure data and sends it to third parties. The Criminal Police Bureau indicated that it uses unmanned aerial vehicles for the prevention and investigation of criminal offenses, but could not comment further on the confidential nature of the institution's activities.

The Special Investigation Service (SIS), which purchased the Chinese drone in 2018, was unable to answer about the total number of DJI unmanned aerial vehicles recruited due to non-public activities and whether it had been warned of the potential threat of such equipment.

The State Border Guard Service (SBGS) purchased Chinese unmanned aerial vehicles in both 2019 and 2020, concluding contracts for more than 70,000 Euros but also stated that it could not provide detailed information of an official nature.

According to the Deputy Minister of National Defense Margiris Abukevičius, drones are used in the army for public relations, filming of events, basic training of soldiers on how to disguise and notice the drone, but other drones are used for actual operations. "We are really talking to our allies about the threats posed by China's technology, and we have information about these drones. Yes, the Lithuanian Armed Forces has acquired such drones, most of them were acquired in 2017–2019, ”said Abukevičius, Deputy Minister of National Defense of the Republic of Lithuania.

There are no plans to conduct a separate security risk study of DJI drones in Lithuania, as has been done with Chinese telephones and cameras due to the reliance on Allied information.

According to the LRT, in 2017, the US Department of Homeland Security announced that DJI drones were sending sensitive infrastructure and law enforcement data to China, thus facilitating espionage. A year later, the Pentagon banned the use of all DJI commercial drones due to cyber security concerns, and in 2019, Congress passed a law banning defense agencies from using Chinese-made drones.

 The Pentagon reiterated this year that DJI drones pose a threat to national security, confirming allegations that unmanned aircraft collect data and send it to third parties because the identified defects in the drones have been confirmed. The Japanese government has done the same, urging the authorities to replace such drones, and some of the country's institutions collecting sensitive information are no longer using Chinese equipment."

 Landsbergiai-led firms like Nota Bene buy for the services golden spoons and unsafe Chinese drones. Landsbergiai only care about their pockets.