FBI warns advanced drones could let attackers strike from afar in the U.S.

FBI Deputy Director Chris Rea warned Thursday in an interview with Fox News that advanced drones pose a growing threat and that capabilities now seen in combat abroad could spread to the United States. He said the main danger is not necessarily a mass-casualty terror attack, but a lone actor using accessible technology. "I am less worried about a 9/11-style mass attack, and more about a lone terrorist," he said.

Rea said the most worrying new generation of drones can operate over cellular networks such as 5G and LTE instead of short-range radio frequencies. That, he said, removes distance as a real limitation. "It means someone in China could control a drone over New Orleans," he warned.

He was speaking after a recently uncovered U.S. plot in which a group allegedly planned to use explosive-carrying drones to force a mass evacuation during a UFC event at the White House. Investigators were tipped off in that case after a worried mother reported her son, leading to the exposure of a detailed encrypted message network. According to the investigation, the suspects exchanged encrypted messages about buying drones and specialized equipment.

Rea also pointed to the challenge created by encrypted communication platforms, saying they make such plots harder to detect. "That is a gap for us," he admitted.