The integration of unmanned systems into crime is already here, and we have to ask ourselves how criminals and terrorists might use drones and robots some years from now.
Just as the internet and smartphones presented significant opportunities as well as challenges, so will this technology. Our new report by Europol’s Innovation Lab explores the future operating environment for European law enforcement agencies and suggests actions needed today in order to effectively combat crime while upholding public trust and fundamental rights tomorrow. One chapter of the report highlights the role of war as a driver for innovation in unmanned systems.
Read more…
Source: Europol
Sign up for the Counter-IED Report Newsletters
The latest news and insights delivered right to your inbox
Related:
- Winnipeg Police Service Bomb Unit Destroyed Suspected IED in Centennial Neighbourhood
September 23, 2024
On Saturday night, September 21, 2024, the Winnipeg Police Service (WPS) responded to a report of a suspicious package in the Centennial neighbourhood. The incident occurred shortly after 10:00 PM when a resident discovered a package in the back lane that appeared to be an Improvised Explosive Device (IED). The WPS Bomb Unit was called in ...
- Texas: Lubbock Regional Bomb Squad used EOD Robot to end police standoff
September 19, 2024
One person is in custody after Lubbock authorities responded to a barricaded subject Wednesday morning. Felix Delarosa, 39, is charged with aggravated assault against a public servant following a SWAT standoff that lasted nearly two hours. Authorities used the Lubbock Regional Bomb Squad Robot to help take Delarosa into custody. When the robot arrived in front ...
- National Robot Rodeo ropes in emerging EOD technologies
September 11, 2024
Military and civilian explosive ordnance disposal experts tried out the latest Explosive Ordnance Disposal technologies and robotics in the 2024 National Robot Rodeo competition, Aug. 26-30. The week-long event, managed by the United States Bomb Technician Association, brought EOD bomb technicians from the government, public sector and international agencies together with industry partners to showcase the ...
- Texas: Tyler Fire Department to apply for ‘Bomb Team robot’ grant
August 29, 2024
On Wednesday the Tyler City Council approved the Tyler Fire Department to apply for a $450,000 grant to acquire a robot for the Public Safety Bomb Team. The city said that the Public Safety Bomb Team currently uses a robot that is leant from the Mesquite Fire Department Bomb Team. According to the release, in 2018 ...
- Ukrainian Soldiers Turn Wrecked Teslas into Deadly Drones
August 4, 2024
In a remarkable display of ingenuity, Ukrainian soldiers have repurposed wrecked electric and hydrogen cars to create effective weapons against Russian forces. With the absence of air support to deploy heavy guided bombs, the soldiers sought alternative solutions. They discovered that battery cells from damaged electric vehicles, including Teslas, could power drones. Leveraging this discovery, the ...
- New ‘Bomb Robots’ boost Queensland Police Service safety response capability
August 2, 2024
The Queensland Police Service (QPS) has significantly upgraded its explosive ordnance response capabilities by introducing five new Remote Positioning Vehicles-Medium (RPV-M), commonly known as “bomb robots”. This enhancement is part of the QPS RPV Replacement Program, representing a $2.6 million investment to replace the existing fleet that has served for the past 12 years and ...
- Arizona: Robot dogs being used to help first responders during suspicious calls
July 17, 2024
The Arizona Department of Public Safety is out patrolling the roads every day. Still, DPS has a lot of different departments, like its bomb squad which responds to threats with the FBI and local police departments. They are constantly using new technology to help on calls. DPS currently has 10 bomb squad technicians, and they use ...
- U.S. Army Tests Quadcopter Swarm-Launching Uncrewed Ground Vehicle For Clearing Mines
May 22, 2024
Groups of drones autonomously launching from uncrewed ground vehicles could well be part of the U.S. Army’s future toolkit for mine-clearing operations. Work on the project has been spearheaded by Fort Liberty’s 20th Engineer Brigade, part of the XVIII Airborne Corps, and other service members, industry partners, and independent research and development institutes. The first Sandhills ...
- Thailand: Songkhla power plant hit by explosions
April 26, 2024
Three loud explosions caused damage to the boiler of a biomass power plant located in Ban Plak Bo area. The Explosives Recovery and Inspection team from Southern Border Province Investigation Division has thoroughly inspected all areas inside and outside the power plant. It turned out that the attackers had placed four improvised explosive devices in gas cylinders ...
- Australia: Clearance divers put to the test
April 9, 2024
The robot’s video feed showed an innocuous-looking cardboard box, but from intelligence gathered, Chief Petty Officer Thomas Buchanan knew it was time to put on a bomb suit. Earlier that day, the Mine Warfare and Clearance Diving Task Group headquarters tasked clearance diving elements to clear a wharf in preparation for ships coming alongside. But with ...
- Massachusetts: Robotic police dog shot multiple times, helped avoid bloodshed
March 28, 2024
Roscoe, a robotic dog, is being thanked by state police in Massachusetts for helping avert a tragedy involving a person barricaded in a home. The robot dog was part of the Massachusetts State Police Bomb Squad and deployed on March 6 in a Barnstable house after police were fired upon. Police sent in two other robots ...
- EOD technicians support US Army recruiting at robotics competition in West Virginia
February 21, 2024
Explosive Ordnance Disposal technicians supported U.S. Army recruiters during a middle and high school robotics competition in Wheeling, West Virginia. Soldiers from the 754th Ordnance Company (EOD) demonstrated the tools of their profession to students at the Wheeling Robotics Competition. Staff Sgt. Andrew Gettle from Lebanon, Pennsylvania; Pfc. Calvin Battaglia from West Chester, Pennsylvania; and Pfc. ...
- ERDC supports integration of robotic and autonomous technologies
January 18, 2024
The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) played a significant role in a recent event geared toward introducing innovative methods of protecting Soldiers during ground combat. The XVIII Airborne Corps and 20th Engineer Brigade organized and hosted the Sandhills Future Breaching Experiment at Fort Liberty, North Carolina, in December 2023, to discuss integrating robotic ...
- Robot dogs protect lives through innovation
December 21, 2023
BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La. — “These robot dogs not only have the potential to save Airmen’s lives, but they also serve as a reminder of how valuable your voice is, regardless of rank.” Master Sgt. Dominic Garcia, the emergency management flight chief from the 2nd Civil Engineer Squadron, devised the concept of robot dogs and ...
- B-Roll Sandhills Project: 20th Engineer Brigade and industry partners test autonomous breaching capabilities
December 14, 2023
The Sandhills Project is an experiment to deliver robotic, autonomized breaching solutions to large-scale combat operations, Fort Liberty, N.C., Dec. 14, 2023. Current conflicts indicate that US forces may encounter extensive obstacle efforts several kilometers in depth on future battlefields. Future breaching requires greater speed and flexibility to rapidly maneuver through obstacles, leveraging lower cost equipment, ...
