The tax authority said it had used artificial intelligence to scan aerial photographs and identify properties with swimming pools that

The new system uses aerial surveillance to check whether properties have recently added a pool. Seven thousand properties were flagged as suspicious and then checked by human inspectors. The vast majority had been built without permission or had failed to declare the pool, bringing in 12 million euros ($13.8 million) in revenue for the taxman. France’s Council of State, the supreme court for administrative cases, has ruled that the use of drones does not violate privacy laws. But it said the system could only be used on an exceptional basis and that home-owners must be informed in advance. ($1 = 0.8855 euros) (Reporting by Emmanuel Jarry; Editing by Richard Lough and Gareth Jones)