Police may be receiving the power to shoot unmanned drone aircraft out of the sky, and to use the machines more broadly in their own operations as well.
The Ministry of the Interior has begun a legislative project aimed at broadening the authority of the police to intercept drones, UAVs and other vessels or vehicles suspected of being involved in a crime.
The ministry writes in a release on Friday that the police currently have insufficient powers to intervene in the illicit use of drones, such as in cases of espionage or unlawful surveillance.
The Interior Ministry estimates that there are some tens of thousands of commercially available drones in Finland. While most of the aircraft are used for recreation or legitimate business, by individuals as well as the authorities, cases of goods or drugs smuggling via drone have also been reported in recent years.
Uses and misuses
The Interior Ministry's new probe also aims to improve police capability in assessing whether unmanned aerial vehicles could pose serious threat to life and limb, or indeed in what capacities they may be used for illegal activities.
Near misses and even accidents involving drones crashing into aeroplanes have been reported in Finland and the world. Air traffic controllers have previously warned Finnish pilots to be on the lookout for the flying contraptions.
Police themselves currently use drones for the surveillance of large gathered crowds.
Last year the Defense Forces also expressed the need for more authority in dealing with drones in military base airspace. Certain parts of the Helsinki city centre are also no-fly zones, which the Finnish Transport Safety Agency lists online.