--- title: "Someone Is Terrorizing People By Peering In Windows With a Drone" description: "Australian homeowners say someone is using a drone to leer in their windows, according to the Melbourne newspaper the Herald Sun." date: "2019-02-09" modified: "2019-02-09" authors: - name: "Jon Christian" job_title: "Executive Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jonc" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/terrorizing-people-peering-windows-drone" categories: - "Drones" - "Robotics" - "Robots and Machines" tags: - "australia" - "crime" - "drone" - "the digest" --- # Someone Is Terrorizing People By Peering In Windows With a Drone ![Australian homeowners say someone is using a drone to leer in their windows, according to the Melbourne newspaper the Herald Sun.]() *\Image: ERIC SANTOYO/VICTOR TANGERMANN\* ## Terror Drone Australian homeowners say someone is using a drone to leer in their windows, [according to the Melbourne newspaper]() the *Herald Sun* — and it could be a sign of things to come as inexpensive drone technology becomes even more ubiquitous. "The drone is looking into our windows — it is such an invasion of privacy and it’s a bit creepy," resident Ashley Torcasio told the paper. ## Invasion of Privacy Torcasio said the drone buzzed her house twice, according to the story. She also spotted a car at the edge of her property which drove off when she shined a light at it, leading her to suspect that thieves could be using the drone to scope out her property for a robbery. "For all we know it could be trying to case out if anyone’s home," Torcasio told the *Herald Sun,* "looking to see if they could break in or what someone’s movements throughout the day are." ## Buzz Off Maneuverable, consumer-oriented drones, which often retail for just a few hundred dollars, raise enormous questions about privacy and the use of low airspace. This past December, drone sightings [shut down Gatwick airport]() in London for several days. It's also difficult to enforce laws direct at drones, because they can always just fly away before authorities have a chance to arrive. "It just hovers — it’s an annoying noise and it seems to be checking yards out," another homeowner told the *Herald Sun* of the mysterious drone flybys. **READ MORE:** [‘Creepy’ drone hovering beside windows and above backyards in Diamond Creek]() \[*The Herald Sun*\] ***More on drones:*** [Someone Just Used a Drone to Try to Assassinate a World Leader]() ## Author I'm responsible for editing, assigning, and scouting at Futurism, as well as occasionally writing for the site. That work involves keeping an eye on a wide range of narratives and issues, but over the past few years I've become increasingly interested in how AI is shaping the future of media, the web, and information itself. My day-to-day often involves collaborating on reporting and commentary projects bylined by my colleagues, but I try to find time to do my own reporting as well; stories I've broken for Futurism have been cited by publications including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the New Yorker, Wired, Ars Technica, New York Magazine, the Columbia Journalism Review, Bloomberg, and more. I grew up in Southern Vermont and attended Vanderbilt University. Prior to Futurism, I contributed to outlets including the Boston Globe, Vice, Wired, Slate, the Atlantic, the Outline, Ars Technica and more, and did stints in farming and food service. I currently live in Brooklyn, New York, and in my free time I enjoy pinball, word games, cycling, running, and music production. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()