It is a decision of the Council of State with the aim of protecting property and people.
Published on 02/01/2025 12:20
Reading time: 2min
Demonstrations and other gatherings will officially be able to be “monitored” by drones. Several associations fighting for individual freedoms contested the legality of the various decrees governing the use of drones for surveillance. The highest instance of administrative justice has just rejected their appeal.
The Council of State considers that the current legal arsenal now provides sufficient guarantees because it does not authorize facial recognition, sound capture, or cross-referencing with other files. But above all because the approval of the administrative court is systematically necessary. And that it is only given when the implementation of other less intrusive means of surveillance is impossible (in an inhabited area for example).
Clearly, the police will be able to use drones more easily, but in a very supervised manner. In fact, this decision is a bit of an epilogue to four years of political-legal controversies. The first drones appeared in public spaces almost five years ago. It was during confinement. But their use was quickly banned, because there was no supervision.
Since then, several laws and decrees have been amended, censored and modified. This made it possible to clarify the framework of use. The case law is also starting to be well documented: drones have, for example, been banned in Pau to monitor illegal crossings at the border with Spain. Same thing in Toulouse for urban rodeos. On the other hand, they have already been authorized in Paris for the May 1 parade in 2023, the demonstrations against pension reform. In fact, it all depends on the duration and extent of the monitored area. Whether we can see people in their homes and, again, whether other less intrusive means of surveillance exist.
Not sure that all the safeguards are in place, because we are now worried about the possible perpetuation of algorithmic video surveillance. These are these smart cameras capable of automatically detecting certain behaviors. An experiment was set up during the Olympics. It should end in March. But if it is sustained, this could largely call into question the current framework of drone surveillance.
