30/11/2025
Fresh on revelations that the WA Police Commissioner has an arrangement with Westfield Shopping Centre Cannington to access number plates of cars using the parking facility......
"A Sydney-based company with links to China is supplying drones equipped with artificial intelligence to Western Australia’s police force, sparking concerns about the security of the data collected by the advanced surveillance technology.
Pioneer Computers announced in April it had been awarded a contract by the WA Government to supply and deliver a “drone in a box” to the State’s police force for three years, with an option to extend for a further two.
The value of the contract has not been publicly disclosed, but Pioneer boasts its drone product comes with “advanced artificial intelligence, thermal imaging, and real-time communication abilities”.
Last year the Cook Government announced the WA Police Force had begun trialling the technology to “improve safety and enhance intelligence-gathering for officers responding to emergencies”.
“Footage captured by the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) can be live-streamed to the mobile phones of frontline police, as well as officers and other agencies at the State Operations Command Centre (SOCC),” the Government announced in a statement in August.
Paul Papalia, who was police minister at the time, described the trial as “yet another example of the Western Australia Police Force leading the nation in adopting modern technology to enhance emergency response capability and make WA safer for everyone”.
Former Defence official Michael Shoebridge says over recent years governments have been warned to phase out Chinese-made surveillance cameras and drones, because it’s impossible to keep the data they collect secure.
“Given how much public knowledge there is about these security issues with Chinese drones and surveillance technology, it’s surprising that Australian officials’ behaviour is not changing,” Mr Shoebridge said.
According to the Pioneer Computer website, the company is an endorsed Australian Government supplier, with customers including the Department of Defence and the NSW Police Force.
A spokesperson for Pioneer Computers declined to say where their surveillance technology was made, telling the West Australian “the WA Police Drone in the Box tender is for a third-party product”.
“The contract is awarded to multiple suppliers. They all supply the same product,” they said.
The WA Police Force is yet to respond to questions about its “Drone in the Box” contract. " (West Australian Sat 29th Nov)
