{"id":15370,"date":"2025-07-25T21:13:52","date_gmt":"2025-07-25T21:13:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/demo4.dedicatedhost247.com\/newstime\/dji-couldnt-confirm-or-deny-it-disguised-this-drone-to-evade-a-us-ban\/"},"modified":"2025-07-25T21:13:52","modified_gmt":"2025-07-25T21:13:52","slug":"dji-couldnt-confirm-or-deny-it-disguised-this-drone-to-evade-a-us-ban","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/demo4.dedicatedhost247.com\/newstime\/dji-couldnt-confirm-or-deny-it-disguised-this-drone-to-evade-a-us-ban\/","title":{"rendered":"DJI couldn\u2019t confirm or deny it disguised this drone to evade a US ban"},"content":{"rendered":"


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DJI barely sells drones<\/a> in the United States anymore. The shelves are bare; resellers are jacking up prices. It appears an unofficial ban at US customs<\/a> is to blame. But on Amazon, you can now buy a drone that\u2019s a a dead ringer for the DJI Mini 4 Pro \u2014 the SkyRover X1 \u2014 for a reasonable $758<\/a>. And that\u2019s probably because DJI made it happen.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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There\u2019s evidence suggesting so, and DJI was not able to immediately deny the SkyRover X1 was a DJI product when we reached out.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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As reported by DroneXL<\/em><\/a>, security researchers have discovered the SkyRover X1 not only has the same specs, features, and an incredibly similar app to the one DJI provides for its drones, it uses DJI\u2019s own online infrastructure.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cIt has connections to @DJIGlobal @DJISupport @DJIEnterprise via @DJIFlySafe references, and \u2018AASKY\u2019 references,\u201d tweeted Kevin Finisterre<\/a>, a hacker who\u2019s made headlines<\/a> for digging into DJI\u2019s products in the past. Finisterre was even able to log in with his DJI username and password.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Image: Kevin Finisterre (X)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Another security consultant, Jon Sawyer, discovered the SkyRover app even uses the same encryption keys<\/a> as DJI, and that the company which created the app only did a rudimentary job of trying to hide its tracks, renaming instances of \u201cDJI\u201d to \u201cxxx\u201d or \u201cuav.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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But that\u2019s not the only shady thing going on: someone doesn\u2019t want you to know this drone is a DJI-alike. After drone reviewer AirPhotography took flak in the comments of his SkyRover X1 review<\/a> for not pointing out obvious similarities to DJI, he revealed that he\u2019d agreed<\/em> not to mention any other drone brands in the video in order to secure the review unit. \u201cThat was their only stipulation,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Image: YouTube<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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AirPhotography has since thought better of this, it seems; he now has two extra videos that directly compare to the Mini 4 Pro, calling it \u201csuspiciously similar\u201d:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Note that the drone isn\u2019t exactly<\/em> the same. AirPhotography says there are slight differences with the camera, and he told viewers that the SkyRover won\u2019t fit existing DJI batteries and won\u2019t connect to existing DJI controllers. He put up another video<\/a> shortly before we published this story to get into all the differences.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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We gave DJI a full day to confirm or deny whether the SkyRover X1 is a DJI product, but the company was not able to meet that deadline. \u201cI\u2019m still looking into this with our headquarters team,\u201d spokesperson Regina Lin tells The Verge<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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If the SkyRover X1 is created or licensed by DJI, it wouldn\u2019t be the first time. US lawmakers are already aware \u2014 and some are annoyed \u2014 that DJI found a seeming loophole by finding a US company, Anzu Robotics, to manufacture a Mavic 3 clone called the Raptor<\/a>, and a Hong Kong one, Cogito, for the Specta and Specta Mini clones<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The SkyRover X1 seems to be made by SZ Knowact in Malaysia, according to FCC filings<\/a>. Malaysia is currently a popular destination for Chinese companies to escape the worst of US tariffs, though it too may have a higher rate in August<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"\u201cClassy<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cClassy move @DJIGlobal.\u201d<\/figcaption>Image: Konrad Iturbe (X)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The SkyRover app lists SZ Knowact as its developer in Apple\u2019s App Store, and as Konrad Iturbe shows,<\/a> its website is nearly identical to the one that Cogito provides for its own DJI clones.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The US government has yet to formally ban DJI drones, but a de facto ban will happen automatically by December<\/a> if \u201can appropriate national security agency\u201d doesn\u2019t publicly declare that its products do not \u201cpose an unacceptable risk to the national security of the United States.\u201d The US Commerce Department finally opened an investigation to figure that out <\/a>on July 1st.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Here\u2019s my interview with DJI<\/a> about what will happen if the ban goes through.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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In the meanwhile, DJI has stated that US Customs is blocking many of its drones from entering the United States. US Customs and Border Protection will not deny this: we\u2019ve repeatedly asked, but the agency claims it\u2019s not allowed to say even that. Here\u2019s a statement via CBP spokesperson Trish Driscoll:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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CBP is not authorized to disclose specific company or commodity information pursuant to various federal laws and internal policies including but not limited to the Trade Secrets Act (18 USC 1905), and certain information that may be responsive to your request may also be deemed to be law enforcement sensitive information, which CBP will not disclose. This response ensures the confidentiality of proprietary trade information and law enforcement sensitive information, which in turn preserves commercial privacy and trust in CBP handling of sensitive information.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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