A major security lapse has exposed hours of live surveillance footage from the San Francisco Police Department’s drone program.
The footage offers a rare glimpse into the scale of aerial policing now taking place over one of America’s largest cities.
According to WIRED, two cybersecurity researchers discovered that live feeds from five SFPD drones had been publicly accessible through a web link generated by drone manufacturer Skydio.
The stream reportedly remained exposed for months before it was taken offline.
The leaked footage showed drones tracking suspects through city streets, monitoring apartment buildings, following vehicles, and assisting officers during arrests and investigations.
SAN FRANCISCO police were streaming LIVE drone surveillance through @SkydioHQ‘s OWN WEBSITE for 6 months! Arrests. Apartments. License plates. All public! 6 months of California police ops on the open internet!
The CCP thanks you for your service.https://t.co/Y94l0QxpdM
— Gunther Eagleman
(@GuntherEagleman) July 13, 2026
In one example, multiple drones tracked a suspect across San Francisco before officers surrounded and arrested him following what police described as an alleged vehicle theft-related incident.
The researchers, Sam Curry and Maik Robert, said the publicly accessible feeds included live color and thermal video, GPS location data, and information identifying drone operators.
The archive reportedly contained roughly 60 videos from 20 separate drone flights conducted over approximately 48 hours, documenting hundreds of people and vehicles throughout the city.
According to the report, San Francisco’s drone program has expanded significantly since launching in 2024.
The department has increased its fleet from six drones to 98, with officers conducting more than 1,400 drone deployments between May 2024 and March 2026.
WIRED reported that the exposed footage captured police responding to alleged vehicle thefts, missing person investigations, reports of armed suspects, welfare checks and other incidents.
The publication said the exposed link appeared to have been created without password protection or an expiration date, allowing anyone who discovered the address to view the live feeds.
The San Francisco Police Department said the link was intended only for internal law enforcement use and called it an “internal restricted link.”
“After being made aware of the vulnerability, SFPD has put more restrictive sharing protocols in place to ensure unauthorized individuals will not be able to access our footage,” the department said.
“At this time, we do not have information that other individuals were accessing the live drone feed. This matter remains under investigation.”
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