> Above 500 metres, in many countries I imagine it would be against a regulation already, or have a particular permit. In Australia, the limit is 120 metres; similar in the US. If it was big enough to be visible at 500 metres, it was likely enterprise level and could've had battery redundancy and parachute-type safety systems. They would've been insured which covers property damage which is the dominant risk by area. Anywhere near that altitude and you would have no chance of seeing a prosumer drone or probably hearing it. At 120 metres, you probably couldn't see or hear my drone against the background noise of suburbia.

Those are all good points, but they also all miss my main point: How can I know?

I could see it and hear it and I roughly estimate it was two or three blocks away. (It sounded like a weed-whacker, but something about the sound nagged at me. Then I saw it from my desk through the open back door (it was a very warm day.) They seemed to keep landing it and then taking off again, maybe to swap batteries?)

In this situation, what can I do to know if it's a legit user or just one of my neighbors being a jackass? Can I call the police? What could they do about it?

> Someone can see into your yard looking over the fence.

No they can't. The hedges are two stories high, for a reason.

> Or from a helicopter

People don't joyride helicopters over this area.

> or commercial plane taking off or landing.

No nearby airstrips.

> No one wants to see into your yard.

You don't know that.

> If the drone is half a kilometre away, they're not looking through the window at you in the shower.

Again, you don't know that. We don't know what the drone is carrying and that's my main point.

(Good luck to anyone who sees me in the shower though! The sight would be it's own punishment.)

And anyway, it's my weed plants I don't want neighbors to see. Last thing I need is some adventurous idiot hopping the fence to snatch my hairy, stinky, glittering nuggets right at harvest time!

> If there's a drone of that size in the burbs, it's usually taking real estate photos of one property from various angles and they're already under regulation, licensed, insured, etc. They'll often make sure they're hovering above a roof to minimise risk if it falls, etc.

Again, I'm not saying we should ban legit users (commercial or hobbyist), I'm saying that there has to be some way to deal with the new technology when people are doing stupid stuff with it. These guys were just flying around all over a dense residential neighborhood. It might have been legit surveying or something, or it might have been some dude playing with his flying go-pro. How can I tell? What can I do about it if it's the latter?

> (I operate as a hobby and occasionally commercially under a sub-2kg classification in Australia: https://serio.com.au/ It requires registration and a few other things, but not the $xk in formal licensing. I typically fly in regional areas because there are fewer risks, fewer people to aggravate, and more interesting subject matter.)

I used to launch model rockets. Not too often though, because my parents had to drive me to a large field outside of town because it's illegal to do it in town, and they didn't always have time. Such is life, eh?