Lawmakers Want NIST to Develop Guidelines for Agencies’ Use of Commercially Available Drones

Sens. Mark Warner, D-Va., and John Thune, R-S.D., introduced on Wednesday the Drone Evaluation to Eliminate Cyber Threats Act, a bill that will require the National Institute of Standards and Technology to create a guidebook on the use and management of civilian-made unmanned aircraft systems owned or controlled by an agency and regularly used to connect or exchange data with information systems.

If enacted, the Act will have the Office of Management and Budget test the NIST-based guidelines in one federal agency and later on, have all concerned agencies adopt the policies and principles, Nextgov/FCW reported.

In a statement, Warner said that the guidelines will allow the U.S. government to continue investing in new technologies without fearing that sensitive information is being shared with adversaries.

Besides securing sensitive data while using civilian drones, the DETECT Act also aims to require drone-supplying contractors to report any security vulnerabilities discovered and forbid agencies from acquiring unqualified drones.

NIST has been involved in improving the use of drones across the U.S. government. In October 2022, it started offering the Advanced Open/Obstructed Test Proctor Course for Evaluating Drone Capabilities and Remote Pilot Proficiency, a program to test drones for procurement purposes.