The Scottish Prison Service is turning to AI drone detection technology in a bid to thwart airborne deliveries to prisoners, according to the justice secretary.
Prison officials have been exploring technology which can detect when unmanned aerial vehicles are entering prison airspace, Angela Constance told a meeting of the Scottish Parliament.
The prison service has been exploring a range of measures to combat the rise in drones being used to deliver suspected drugs, syringes, and mobile phone SIM cards to inmates.
In a response to a question from Scottish Conservative MSP Alexander Stewart, Ms Constance said: “The use of drones to introduce illicit items into our prison estate is a current and credible threat, and it is one that the Scottish Prison Service and I are taking very seriously.
“I am pleased to inform the member that the Scottish Prison Service has been trialling preventative measures to negate the risk that is presented by drones and it is evaluating their effectiveness before finalising a targeted approach to this clear and obvious threat to safety in our prisons.”
According to Mr Stewart, information obtained from prisons shows that criminals are ‘increasingly using state-of-the-art technology to avoid security.’
He said: “One drone was found to be full of mobile phone SIM cards, syringes and needles, together with tablets and suspected drugs. Violence among inmates will be an inevitable consequence of drone deliveries. What action can be put in place to ensure that the lives of hard-working prison officers are protected?”
In reply, Ms Constance said: “I will point to three specific actions among many that are being taken. There are measures to improve infrastructure, such as the piloting of the implementation of new window grills in some of our larger establishments.
“There are targeted reactive measures that involve the piloting of covert technology to detect when a drone is approaching or entering SPS airspace. There is also the drone detection pilot called Dedrone, which ended earlier this year. SPS is currently exploring other software and technologies that are on the market.”
According to Scottish Prison Service, there were 94 recorded sightings or recoveries of drones in Scottish prisons from 2020 to 2024. Official data shows a huge spike in attempted deliveries in 2023, with 67 (71%) in that year alone, up from 6 in 2020.
On Christmas Day last year, several inmates were hospitalised after taking drugs that were suspected of being delivered to HMP Glenochil, in Clackmannanshire, by drone.
Dedrone is a pioneering new AI-driven autonomous drone detection and mitigation platform, developed by Axon. The platform enables public safety and defence teams to detect, track, and, when necessary, neutralise rogue drones in real time, ensuring both public spaces and sensitive areas remain secure.
A Scottish Prison Service spokesperson said: “Any attempt to bring illicit substances into our establishment, including by a drone, poses a significant threat to the health and wellbeing of those in our care, and we will use all technological and intelligence tools available to prevent this wherever possible.
“We continue to work with Police Scotland, and other partners, to take action against those who attempt to breach our security.”
