Civilian drones pose a "steadily escalating threat," as the devices are likely to be used by terrorists, criminal groups or drug cartels to carry out attacks in the U.S., FBI Director Chris Wray told a Senate committee.
"Terrorist groups could easily export their battlefield experiences to use weaponized" drones, Wray said in written testimony for a hearing Wednesday of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
Wray's comments, his most forceful to date on the threat from drones, come as U.S. law enforcement and homeland security agencies have just obtained legal authority to monitor drone communications and to disable them in extreme cases as a result of such concerns.