As drones are becoming cheaper, their usefulness has expanded as well. Now drones can be used by hobbyists, videographers, and let’s not forget law enforcement as well. As it turns out and according to a report from The Telegraph, South American countries such as Argentina have started using drones to seek out millionaires who might be evading their taxes.
How is this possible? Well it seems that some millionaires have reportedly registered their properties as empty lots. Sounds innocent enough, right? However when the police decided to fly their drones up there to take a look and instead of discovering an empty plot of land, law enforcement has stumbled upon sprawling mansions with swimming pools and whatnot.
Those who were caught are not looking at some pretty steep fines and it has been estimated that the government could be earning as much as $2 million from unpaid taxes from these hidden mansions. Then again if they could afford to build it, we guess they can afford to pay their fines as well.
However it seems that despite the use of drones to help seek out tax evaders and drug smuggling routes, some are expressed their concerns about their privacy, and according to Alejandro Sanchez of the Council on Hemispheric Affairs, he states that “there’s a possibility this technology can be used for all the wrong reasons and, unfortunately, throughout Latin America’s history, the abuse of power tends to happen quite often.”