Images captured by flying drones trigger complaint at GPDP

The Office for Personal Data Protection (GPDP) and the Public Security Police Force (CPSP) have received a complaint over an alleged violation of data protection, involving images captured by flying drones in Macau.
A GPDP spokesperson refused to disclose further details regarding the complaint, Radio Macau reported. The use of drones has recently become increasingly popular across the globe, and Macau is no exception.
The GPDP issued a statement yesterday, alerting Macau’s population to the use of flying drones to capture images, as personal data protection issues may arise.
“Drones are a challenge to privacy [laws] since they are able to [help] capture clear images and sound in different places and at a great altitude,” the statement reads.
Furthermore, the department recalled that anyone using drones to capture images should not be photographing or shooting images involving residents’ private lives. For instance, images inside houses should not be filmed.
If images of people’s private lives, or even their voices, are recorded without their consent, terms of the Criminal Code may also be applied. The violation of these legal terms will imply “respective legal responsibilities,” the GPDP stressed.