By C1 Staff
BISHOPVILLE, SC — Those attempting to get contraband inside prisons have graduated from throwing packages over fences to simply flying over them.
The New York Times reports that there has been an uptick in the number of drones being used to bring drugs and cell phones inside prison walls.
The technique is still in its experimental stages, but it is an alternative to established methods like paying off officers, hiding contraband in incoming laundry and aforementioned throwing over fences.
There were four attempts in the United States in the past two years, and four in Ireland, Britain, Australia and Canada.
The main type of contraband prison authorities are trying to keep out are cell phones, which inmates are willing to pay a hefty price for in order to continue conducting business from behind bars.
Recently there’s been an increased push by law enforcement agencies, companies and privacy watchdogs to restrict the flight of drones. Current laws and regulations governing drones are outdated and confusing.
The best solution at present seems to be “geofencing,” or software that prevents drones from flying over a specific location. One company, DJI, whose drone crashed into the White House lawn, is now creating such software that would make UAVs inoperable within roughly 16 miles of a specified area.
Another company, No Fly Zone, has created a website where individuals, business owners and others who do not want drones overhead can enter their addresses into a database. The company says it will pass on this information to drone manufacturers who have agreed to program their devices to not fly over those locations.
Prisons in the US have taken their own steps to thwarting the fly path of drones, but did not wish to elaborate for fear of giving smugglers an edge.