FBI Director Admits 'Drones Are Watching You'

Suspicions confirmed. FBI Director Robert Mueller admitted Wednesday before a Senate judiciary committee hearing that the agency employs domestic drones for surveillance use over US soil.

FBI Director Robert Mueller admitted before a Senate judiciary committee that the spy agency employs drones for domestic surveillance. (Photo: AP File) “Our footprint is very small,” Mueller told the committee. “We have very few and have limited use.” He added that, though there are currently no rules governing the use of domestic surveillance drones, the FBI was in “the initial stages” of “exploring guidelines” for their use.

The Guardian reports:

It is known that drones are used by border control officials and have been used by some local law enforcement authorities and Department of Homeland Security in criminal cases.

Mueller said he wasn’t sure if there were official agreements with these other agencies.

“To the extent that it relates to the air space there would be some communication back and forth [between agencies],” Mueller said.

The revelation came as Mueller was defending the National Security Administration’s widespread surveillance of Americans’ phone and internet records, which has been the subject of growing condemnation due to what critics call the clear erosion of civil liberties and privacy in the country.

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This article originally appeared on: Common Dreams