Opportunities and threats of using unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) in improving national security culture

Abstract

PURPOSE: This article examines the opportunities and threats associated with the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the context of national security culture. It aims to identify how UAV technology influences the resilience of national security systems and to propose preventive, systemic solutions that strengthen security culture through the integration of legal, organizational, and technological mechanisms.

DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: The study adopts a systems-based analytical framework combining systems analysis, normative and legal analysis, desk research, and a conceptual case study of the proprietary UAVOcheck application. The findings are further supported by a secondary analysis of qualitative data from 15 in-depth expert interviews conducted between 2022 and 2024 with specialists representing the aviation, regulatory, operational, and national security sectors.

FINDINGS: The results demonstrate the dual nature of UAV technology. While drones significantly enhance operational capabilities, situational awareness, crisis response, and critical infrastructure monitoring, they also generate new risks related to airspace violations, asymmetric threats, operator anonymity, and regulatory gaps. The study identifies the technology distribution stage as a critical but underdeveloped element of preventive security policy.

PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The article proposes integrating preventive verification mechanisms into the UAV sales process through the UAVOcheck application. Such solutions can improve operator accountability, strengthen regulatory compliance, reduce systemic vulnerabilities, and enhance national resilience to emerging security threats.

ORIGINALITY/VALUE: The study introduces a preventive, systems-oriented perspective to national security culture by extending security responsibility beyond public institutions to include commercial stakeholders. It contributes an original conceptual model that incorporates the technology distribution stage into national security infrastructure and presents UAVOcheck as an innovative preventive instrument supporting security by design.