The US Army has increasingly used small consumer drones in the field, purchasing them as needed from consumer manufacturers like the well-known Chinese maker DJI. But documents indicate that the Army Aviation Directorate is now enforcing new orders, banning DJI drones "due to increased awareness of cyber vulnerabilities associated with DJI products." The documents, first obtained by Small UAS News, don't explain the Army's security concern, but refer to classified studies about DJI drones that first went out at the end of May. Previously, hackers have been able to jailbreak some DJI drones to control and modify things like safety features on the devices. Some reports have also indicated that DJI can gather location, audio, and even visual data from user flights. It's unclear what data DJI can access without customer consent, but location and media data from an Army drone could potentially reveal extensive information about US military operations.

A drone flies May 11, 2017, in the showroom of the DJI headquarters in Shenzhen, China. A Chinese company that is the world's largest drone manufacturer said Friday it is "surprised and disappointed" by reports the U.S. Army has halted use of its remote-controlled aircraft because of cyber vulnerabilities. An Army memo Wednesday, obtained by sUASnews.com The memo from Lt. Gen. Joseph Anderson, the deputy chief of staff, cited possible threats from any DJI electrical components, software, cameras, radios, GPS units or handheld controllers, the publications reported. It ordered U.S. Army personnel to uninstall all DJI applications and remove all batteries and media storage devices.