Global Security and Intelligence Studies Volume 2, Issue 1, Fall 2016 | Page 68

Global Security and Intelligence Studies - Volume 2, Number 1 - Fall 2016
An Assessment of Lone Wolves Using Explosive-Laden
Consumer Drones in the United States
Matthew Hughes A & James Hess B
The recent advent of the consumer drone offers terrorists new capabilities in
sophisticated attacks, particularly lone wolves who can afford these drones
and benefit from standoff and other features. Although terrorists have not yet
employed explosive-laden drones in domestic attacks, drones available on the
market can carry a payload sufficient to achieve lethal or destructive objectives
sought by lone wolves motivated by diverse ideologies targeting long-term
static, short-term static, or mobile targets. The Diffusion of Innovations Theory
suggests that explosive-laden drones are not an immediate threat, but as
pioneering terrorists experiment with consumer drones, this tactic may become
more commonplace as existing defense mechanisms fail to protect targeted
buildings, events and individuals. As consumer drones become more popular
and more sophisticated, countermeasures and government policies must keep
stride with this new and evolving threat.
Keywords: analysis, lone wolf, terrorism, drones, national security
Introduction
Lone wolf terrorism gains increasing media coverage as attack frequency and
death tolls increase, but such attacks are also a testing ground for innovation.
Advances in technology, competition in manufacturing and the diffusion of
ideas through media arm the individual terrorist with a wider assortment of weapons
and knowledge over time. On January 7, 2013, the Chinese drone manufacturer DJI
released the Phantom drone for $679, marking the advent of the consumer drone and
the availability of affordable drones to the public (Ripley 2015, 68). Though designed
for drone enthusiasts and a variety of commercial and recreational uses, nefarious
actors began experimenting with consumer drones. Outside the United States (US),
there have been at least a dozen instances of terrorists attempting to use drones
in an attack, either to carry an explosive to a target or to deliver a chemical agent
(Quan 2014). While established terrorist organizations, mainly in the Middle East,
experiment with larger captured drones or expensive models, consumer drones offer
capabilities of bypassing traditional security measures to small organizations and sole
individuals at affordable prices. In September 2013, a member of the German Pirate
Party crashed a Parrot quadcopter near the feet of German chancellor Angela Merkel
at a campaign rally in Dresden in order to protest government drone surveillance
A
MA Candidate, School of Global and Security Studies, American Military University
B
Associate Professor, School of Global and Security Studies, American Military University
doi: 10.18278/gsis.2.1.5
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