In effect Moderate protection

Illinois Freedom From Drone Surveillance Act

Illinois · 725 ILCS 167

Illinois requires police to obtain a search warrant before using a drone to gather information, subject to narrow exceptions (terrorism, search-and-rescue, crime-scene reconstruction). The 2023 Drones as First Responders amendments (HB 3902) added regulated exceptions for crowd surveillance and emergency response.

Technical detail

725 ILCS 167 et seq. (Freedom From Drone Surveillance Act), originally P.A. 98-0569; amended by P.A. 103-0398 (HB 3902, 2023).

Who is protected: Illinois residents subject to police drone surveillance

Who must comply: Illinois state and local law enforcement

Key facts

Jurisdiction	Illinois
Level	State
Status	In effect
Protection strength	Moderate protection
Effective date	2014-01-01
Enacted	2013-08-16
Citation	725 ILCS 167
Enforced by	Illinois courts (suppression); Attorney General
Private right of action	Yes — individuals can sue
Penalties	Inadmissibility of evidence; civil liability for unauthorized use
Topics	consumer data privacy · police and surveillance AI
Last verified	2026-06-17
Official source	Illinois Compiled Statutes — Freedom From Drone Surveillance Act (725 ILCS 167) ↗

More AI rules in Illinois

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AI Video Interview Act · In effect
HB 3773 (AI Employment Discrimination) · In effect
IL AV local-preemption (2017) · In effect
AI Safety Measures Act (frontier model audits) · Enacted (not yet in effect)
Algorithmic rent price-fixing ban · Proposed / pending

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TAKE IT DOWN Act · In effect
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COPPA + 2025 Rule (childrens data) · In effect
TCPA (AI voice calls) · In effect
DEFIANCE Act (deepfake-porn civil suits) · Proposed / pending
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