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Secret Service tests way to intercept rogue drones with late-night flights over Washington

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Secret Service will conduct mysterious midnight drone flights over the next few weeks in parts of Washington, often a strict no-fly zone, as part of a secret government test aimed at , find ways to jam or shoot rogue drones out of the sky.

A U.S. official with knowledge of the program said the Secret Service is testing drones for law enforcement or protection work and looking at methods such as signal jamming to stop the threat of civilian drones. The drones were flown between 1am and 4am. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the plans publicly. The Secret Service said the details were classified.

Some consumer-grade drones, often with cameras, are powerful enough to carry small amounts of explosives or grenades.

The challenge for the Secret Service is to quickly detect an illegal drone flying near the White House or the President's seat, then hack it for a short period of time to control its flight, or jam its signal to throw it off course or crash it.

The Secret Service said only that it would publicly test the drones over Washington, but declined to provide specifics, such as when they would fly, how many drones would be flying, which parts of the city they would fly over, how long they would be flying and for what purpose. It decided to give the public early notice of the tests out of concern that people who saw them might panic, especially after they were spotted over Paris at night recently. Flying at night also reduces the possibility of radio interference accidentally affecting nearby businesses, drivers, pedestrians and tourists.

Trying to keep a drone away from a safe area can be tricky

Under U.S. communications law, it is illegal to sell or use mobile signal jammer unless a government agency is doing so for a narrow purpose.

Depending on the drone's manufacturer and capabilities, its flight control and video broadcast systems typically use the same common radio frequencies as popular Wi-Fi and Bluetooth technologies. Secret Service drone radio frequency jamming—depending on how powerful or precise its work is—could disrupt nearby Internet networks or phone conversations until it was shut down. Testing in real-world environments around the White House will reveal unintended effects of disruptive effects on nearby buildings, monuments or tall trees.

Signals from an incoming drone, such as those from a video stream back to the pilot, could allow the Secret Service to detect and track it

Federal agencies typically need approval from the U.S. telecommunications advisory body, the Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration, to jam signals. The agency declined to tell The Associated Press whether the Secret Service seeks permission, as the agency said such requests are not routinely made public.

The Federal Aviation Administration has confirmed that it has formally authorized the Secret Service to fly drones and granted it a special waiver to fly over Washington. The agency declined to provide details about the secretive program.

In January, a wayward quadcopter drone piloted by an off-duty US intelligence officer landed on the White House lawn. At the time, the Secret Service said the false landing appeared to be accidental and was not considered a security threat.

The agency had been studying safety issues surrounding drones before the January crash, but that crash led the agency to focus more on the safety of small, hard-to-detect drones. on security issues. Previously released reports revealed that the Secret Service had used anti-tracking jammer in the presidential and vice-presidential motorcade to disrupt signals that could detonate hidden remote-triggered improvised explosive devices.

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Science and Technology Directorate are working on strategies to intercept unauthorized drones flying in secure areas. The Department of Homeland Security's research arm is trying to balance the security concerns of small, hard-to-detect devices with emerging commercial uses and hobbyist interests. Likewise, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration said last week that it was studying how the United States could address privacy risks through increased use of drones.