Remember that scene from the 2014 superhit sci-fi film ‘Interstellar‘ where Cooper and his daughter Murph hijack and bring down an Indian airforce drone using nothing but an old laptop and a radio antenna?
Pretty cool right?
You must be wondering if such an ‘anti-drone’ system is available in the real world that can help us disable rouge and intrusive drones on our property.
Before we divulge into discussing ways on how to disable a drone on your property, please note that this is not your how-to guide to shooting down drones that are flying over your house (more on this below).
Drones are a security & privacy threat
This might seem a little harsh coming from a fellow drone enthusiast but not all of us are very considerate about other people’s privacy and safety.
Commercial camera drones are becoming cheaper and better so more and more people are buying them.
Some new drone owners are unaware of local privacy laws surrounding drones.
So other people who are not very fond of these flying cameras are complaining about privacy-invasive drones. They are on the lookout for ways to protect themselves against such rogue drones and might think of how to take down a drone when it is intrusive.
Can you fly a drone over private property?
You can fly drones over private property. The airspace above your property is owned by the FAA and any activity that occurs in that airspace that does not violate the FAA laws is legal.
According to the FAA, shooting down or damaging a drone in the air is illegal and you might be liable for damages claimed by the drone owner.
However, if you can prove that the drone
- is violating your privacy by recording videos or taking pictures without your consent.
- is putting yourself or a member of your family in danger by reckless flying.
- is interfering with your life in any other way.
You might have a legal case against the drone owner. But keep in mind that such claims are very hard to prove.
We might not yet have an answer for how to take down a drone legally. Technology has evolved much faster, and the laws have not caught up yet.
I have written a comprehensive article to discuss if is it legal to fly drones over houses.
How to disable a drone on your property?
Now that we are clear about the legal aspect of (not) shooting down a drone, let’s discuss the fun and creative ways on how to stop drones from flying over your house and property.
Most of them are developed for or by law enforcement agencies worldwide to deal with reckless flying machines.
Please note again that this article is not your “how-to guide” for shooting down other people’s drones.
1. Shoot it down with a gun
Shooting down a drone using a good ol’ shotgun is one of the easiest and most effective methods, BUT it isn’t for common people.
FAA fought hard to classify drones as aircraft (so that they can regulate them) and under federal code 18 §32, the destruction of an aircraft is a felony offense with a sentence of up to 20 years in prison.
So, can you shoot a drone over your property?
Shooting down a drone flying over your property is illegal, and a federal felony and can land you in jail for up to 20 years.
This method should only be used by law enforcement agencies in extreme cases where a drone poses a threat to civilian lives, property, or national security.
2. Use anti-drone drones
This is a much safer way of bringing down a rogue drone from the skies.
The anti-drone drones use nets to capture and bring down drones without destroying them beyond repair.
Tokyo metropolitan police developed one such program back in 2015 when the Prime Minister’s office was supposedly attacked by a drone carrying a small amount of radioactive material.
This anti-drone drone will carry a 3×2 meter of net that will intercept and capture the unauthorized drone in any restricted area and bring it down safely.
Inspired by the Tokyo police, many private companies have devised similar solutions involving a flying drone with a catching net.
One similar product is developed by Delft Dynamics called DroneCatcher.
It is a multirotor drone with automatic track, trace, and capture functionality using a net similar to the Tokyo police.
3. Use net-firing anti-drone guns
Another similar but more sophisticated solution is the use of a specialized gun that can fire a net over the flying drone from the ground using compressed air projectiles.
One of my favorites is the Skywall Patrol developed by UK-based Openworks Engineering.
It uses an intelligent tracking, locking, and launching system to capture a drone as high as 100m in the air.
It’s cost-effective in comparison to other large ground-based systems, highly mobile, and has low collateral damage.
4. Jam the drone’s radio communications
This might seems like a high-tech, sci-fi solution but in reality, it’s a very simple way to disable a drone on your property.
All drones depend on radio communication with the remote controller for flight plans and with satellites for accurate GPS positioning.
All you have to do is use a radio source to disrupt or “jam” that communication, and the drone can be landed safely or sent back.
There are two ways to do this.
SIGNAL JAMMING: In signal jamming, you use a radio noise to disrupt the drone’s communication with its pilot.
Once jammed, the drone can either be landed on the spot or return home if the RTH (return to home) function is enabled in the onboard computer.
The RTH function is present in most modern drones, including all DJI drone models.
SIGNAL SPOOFING: In signal spoofing, you use a radio signal to impersonate the pilot’s original signal and control the drone’s flight plan.
This way, you can safely land the drone or look into the video feed the drone sends back to the pilot.
Although as funny as it might seem, jamming or spoofing drone radio signals is highly illegal in most countries, including the USA.
In fact, in the USA, the FAA even prohibits the police and local law enforcement agencies from using jammers.
So, if you are thinking about getting one for yourself, make sure you won’t get in trouble for using it.
Radio jamming solutions are available only for the military and authorized law enforcement agencies.
Maybe, someday when the relevant laws are updated, you might have a simple drone jammer app on your smartphone, or you can make your own DIY drone jammers.
But for now, this tech is only available for the big guys.
One of my favorite jammers is developed by an Australian company DroneSheild. It’s called DroneGun and is available for authorized use only.
How does it work? See a video story below.
5. Use trained eagles to capture drones
Yes, you read that right. The Dutch police partnered with a raptor training company called Guard From Above to train and use mighty eagles to intercept and take down unauthorized drones.
Compared to other conventional methods of rogue drone intercept, this one is a bit safer since prey birds are really good at plucking something out of midair as they do it for a living.
However, this can only work with drones of smaller sizes like a DJI Mini 2, but with larger drones, the birds’ safety comes into question.
Especially in countries like the US, where animal rights are well protected, this might create legal problems with animal rights organizations.
How to stop drones from flying over your house? – Conclusion
As a drone enthusiast, I am really excited about everyday technical development and improvements.
But we must be responsible flyers in the skies so that our hobby does not bother the people around us or danger someone’s privacy or safety.
If you are bothered by an intrusive drone, please consider contacting your local law enforcement instead of taking the law into your own hand, please consider contacting your local law enforcement.
That way, your actions do not destroy someone’s property and get you into any legal trouble.
Happy and safe flying, everyone.
So in reading your information we have no legal rights to stop a drone from being in lower air space? Example only being roof top high. I came across your website when trying to help a friend who is having an issue with a drone harassing her livestock. I have livestock as well and have never thought of this problem until it happened to her.
A drone can seriously scare livestock to the point of self injury. So if everyone has the legal right to the air by FAA laws at what deck level does the air become private property? A county property tax employee admitted to flying a drone into my barn to measure how tall the walls were. Thankfully my dairy goat was out on the pasture already, if they had not been then they would have been scared enough to harm themselves. Surely there is more to the laws than what you are explaining here? If the FAA owns all air from 1″ above ground and up then does this mean a person can fly their own drone right on top my covered back porch and record or view anything they wish?
Is it legal for a county-owned drone to provide zoning with pictures of private property, the drone is not part of the zoning department?
We live in the mountains away from neighbors. A drone flew over our house at night. Next time I will shoot one down and toss it in the river
My story is not about getting spied on. A drone flies over a pasture/farm next to my house & starts above the clouds. It’s visible after dark in clear skies. I watch it hover downward for few hours until it touches the tree lines and eventually disappears, every night. I believe it’s a weather modification device as once a week thunder, lightning & rain consistently occurs. I assume it’s also includes chemicals as the birdbath in my yard collects what appears to be nasty red fungus crap. My deck smells of weird chemicals so I wonder if it’s the aluminum & barium being used for geo-engineering
My privacy is my privacy….Don’t give a crap who you are or what rights you have. Stay out of my space….period. This stuff has gone way too far.
Well I just got through spending over $3000 no 4000 cause I had to get a special PTZ Kramer that would track flying objects because I haven’t delivered a spot that everybody wants to fly their freaking drone. I don’t want to shoot them down I don’t want to get in trouble Jesus Christ or I would have done that a long time ago shot gun in hand but people live all around me below me. So that’s out of the question. Well now I’m highly capable of building a jammer complete with amplifier amplifier to really just blast the shit out of it. But I think maybe a laser a green laser. I’ll have to do some investigating but if I could just damage their camera that would be enough to keep them from flying over the house again
What it boils down to is drone operators can do anything they want. Calling the police is pointless as the law essentially grants all air space to drone operators regardless of where it is except over a football game. I have a 6ft. privacy fence but that doesn’t stop drones from flying over. I can report an intrusive drone but the law says they have every right to fly over my yard taking pictures. as long as they fly under 400ft.less than 100mph. the mph regulation makes no sense at all what difference does it make how fast they go?
Hello I need help Please! My neighbors have been harassing me with drones they have been able to see in my home while I’m in the shower sleeping etc. I have gone to the police but haven’t be able to get a good video of them doing this, I’m at the point where I’m saying both my homes because nothing is stopping them any suggestions?
People that do this kind of harassment are the reason why the hobby is getting a bad name. Absolutely illegal and despicable. On the other hand, there are folks that are just paranoid and hate with great passion without substantial reason. A drone will have to have a pretty sophisticated zoom capability to be able to look into someone’s windows enough to gain any sort of creepy stuff. The FAA is in charge of the sky. Land owners have zero ownership over the sky above their property. A few paranoid people have unproven claims of spying, etc…. , and they are making an an exponential amount of others worried also. When in actuality, no one is looking at you. No one cares what your doing. Lol. Less than a percent of drone pilots are criminals and the thoughts and stereotypes that drone pilots are criminals is committing a creepy act in itself. Live your life and be happy. Life is to short to worry about someone’s RC hobby. I truly wish we could just put all the creeps and weirdos in jail, but don’t paint an entire group of people as bad because of a fraction of idiots. Prejudice And fear lead to bad places for the mind to simmer. Life is good. On my a fraction of people are bad, and I truly pity folks that believe different. Living a sad life. I hope that we all can just co-exist without judging everyone around us. Live by example and don’t be a “Karen.” The super aggressive paranoid folks are just as creepy as anyone. Fear and hate is the path to the dark side. I mean, how in the world does someone even know or think they are being spied on? You would have to be a foot from the window to be able to see inside. Lol. Really. Free country and no one owns the sky. Read the laws. Let’s all hope that the creepy spies are caught and prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Sorry for the rant.
When they use thermal and infrared lighted cameras they an see a lot more than you think! That’s what ‘m going through and the pokice think I’m crazy. I’ve even showed them the pictures I took with my camera of the infrared light. They say all that red is normal to see in a security camera. But it’s not!
Hello Wendy,
I think you have the correct disposition regarding Drones having such leinauncy with respect to othets personal privacy in our own homes.
Drones can be equipped with high definition, live-feed video cameras, thermal infrared video cameras, heat sensors, and radar—all of which allow for sophisticated and persistent surveillance or harassment and privacy infringement right down to PeepingTom’s and stalkers.
Drones can record video or still images in daylight or infrared.
Maybe our government doesn’t want to place stricter laws on Drone operators because the government using drones in the same manner.
You got to wonder why so many complaints are filed and not one story of a Drone operator being held accountable.
Yes it would be hard to identify the Drone and its operator leaving little chance to prosecute Drone violators. The FAA and are own government has forces Drone deTection apps illegal except for law enforcement who likes the concept of watching anyone with a search warrant or probable cause. Law Enforcement has their own Drone program watching over us
If other citizens are not concerned as you and I, they are the problem and the reason our country so unstable and crazy.
Thank you for hearing my concerns.
Mark C.
Prescott, AZ
This is spot on … there was an ongoing drug case/ game of cat (police and feds) and mouse(drug dealers) in my city a year or so back with multiple Drones overhead , day and night. I get why law enforcement uses them …less taxpayer paid labor, safer surveillance tactics , inability for criminals to get away from one . But that still goes against core principles in which this country was derived from .
I would first of all, call the police and file a report, make sure it is filed and they give you a number. Now buy a gun and start shooting the drone while someone records it and you with a mobile camera. Call the police during this event, when they arrive tell the you had to fire because a drone was flying LOW in your property.
Remember drones are permitted to fly over properties because air space is for the Federation. But if it’s below your roof, you have your right to shoot it as it trespassing.
If the shooting doesn’t stop your neighbors, cops will. And make sure you are aware cops can get really angry at you until you are able to explain yourself calmly and eloquently so keep it cool.
You’re also welcomed to move to Mexico, I have a good place.
The drone is loud and I sleep directly in front of my window, so it was easy to determine what was going on. And the police won’t do anything! The drone only comes when my cameras are off not when they are on. Smart right?
Greetings folks and I’ve been experiencing the same thing ref drones flying all over my house, looking in windows etc. I also called cops, FAA, HOA etc but to no avail. So I just sent certified letters to every local newspaper, the Mayor’s office, the city sheriff, HOA’s leadership, even the local consumer advocate for the local news. Lastly, I sent a note to the HOA, to let them know that I’ll be suing or bring as much press as possible to let others know what’s going on. It was a long shot, but it at least caused others to understand my plight. Make enough noise and hopefully someone will soon listen and help..
Thanks
Rob