Counter-Drone Solutions for Prisons

DRONES PENETRATE THE PRISON PERIMETER

Small, commercially available drones have transformed contraband smuggling, giving criminals direct access into prison yards, windows, and rooftops from outside the perimeter. Packages carrying drugs, phones, weapons, and other illicit items can be flown in quickly, bypassing traditional ground-based security measures.

These flights undermine discipline, fuel gang and organized criminal activity, and put staff, inmates, and public safety at risk. Drones also enable aerial surveillance, escape assistance, and reconnaissance of layouts and routines. As incidents grow in frequency, payload capacity, and sophistication, prisons and correctional facilities can no longer rely on legacy countermeasures designed for other environments.

ROGUE DRONE RISKS FOR CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES

• Contraband delivery: Drones carry drugs, mobile phones, SIM cards, weapons, and other prohibited items directly into prison yards and housing areas, strengthening criminal networks inside facilities.​
• Violence and intimidation: Smuggled contraband can escalate assaults, extortion, gang activity, and self-harm, increasing danger for both inmates and staff.​
• Operational disruption: Repeated incursions force lockdowns, searches, and emergency responses, diverting resources from core security and rehabilitation missions.​
• Intelligence and surveillance: Drones can be used to film layouts, routines, and patrol patterns, feeding outside criminal planning.​

LEGACY COUNTER‑DRONE TECHNOLOGIES FALL SHORT

Correctional facilities are dense, cluttered, and sensitive environments, where many traditional counter‑drone tools struggle to perform effectively. Radars may misidentify small drones as birds or other moving objects, struggle with   line-of-sight constraints,and can generate false alerts that reduce operator confidence. 

Optical and camera‑based systems depend on unobstructed views, which are hard to maintain around walls, towers, and complex prison layouts, while acoustic sensors are often overwhelmed by facility noise and increasingly quiet drone motors.

Broad‑spectrum jamming‑based solutions risk interfering with critical prison communications, control systems, and nearby infrastructure, and cannot easily distinguish between authorized and unauthorized drones as more facilities adopt their own UAVs for monitoring and inspection. Kinetic methods that shoot down drones can scatter debris and contraband across secure areas, creating new hazards and destroying valuable evidence.

Prisons need a precise, cyber‑driven counter-drone solution that can safely detect, identify, take control of, and land rogue drones without disrupting daily operations, authorized UAV use, or communications.

TAKEOVER BEHIND THE WALLS: RF-CYBER CONTROL FOR PRISONS

EnforceAir is D-Fend Solutions’ high-performance, cyber-driven counter-drone system, purpose-built to deliver safe detection and takeover of rogue drones in sensitive environments like correctional facilities. It automatically and passively detects, locates, and identifies unauthorized drones and, when possible, their controllers and launch locations, then enables secure RF-cyber takeover to guide UAVs to pre-defined safe landing zones for contraband recovery and evidence collection, when allowed by regulations and performed by authorized personnel.

Authorized drones used by the facility can be monitored while remaining fully operational and unaffected, enabling approved aerial monitoring and inspection. By relying on non-kinetic RF-cyber takeover as the primary mitigation layer, EnforceAir avoids collateral damage and interference with vital communications, preserving prison safety, continuity, and control.​

ENFORCEAIR2: PROTECTION FOR COMPLEX PERIMETERS

EnforceAir2, the next-generation evolution of EnforceAir, brings enhanced range, performance, and flexibility to protect large and complex prison compounds. It delivers improved RF-cyber detection and mitigation, increased sensitivity, and an upgraded, intuitive user interface that supports fast, confident decisions in time-sensitive incidents.​

Multiple deployment versions, including stationary, tactical, vehicular, and backpack kits, allow security teams to build layered coverage around walls, towers, yards, access roads, and approach corridors. Compact hardware, low size-weight-power, and quick setup make EnforceAir2 suitable for  perimeter defense and reinforcement of specific hot spots or emerging threat areas.​

ENFORCEAIR PLUS: MULTILAYER DEFENSE FOR HIGH-RISK FACILITIES

For high-risk prisons and correctional systems confronting persistent, sophisticated smuggling attempts, EnforceAir PLUS delivers a multilayer counter-drone architecture built on the EnforceAir2 platform.It fuses RF-cyber detection and takeover with an integrated radar layer and an optional smart RF-effector jamming layer to expand coverage and increase detection confidence in cluttered, obstructed environments around walls and buildings.​

SmartAir, D-Fend Solutions’ AI-enhanced technology fusion engine, correlates data from RF-cyber and radar sensors to present a unified, real-time airspace picture and accurate tracking of drone threats and, when possible, their pilots. This enables a proportional, stepwise response -starting with RF-cyber takeover as the primary mitigation and escalating only when policies, regulations, and threat conditions require the additional smart RF-effector layer.​

KEY CAPABILITIES FOR PRISONS & CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES

• RF-cyber detection, tracking, identification, and takeover of rogue drones used for contraband smuggling, enabling safe, controlled landings for confiscation and investigation.​
• Non-kinetic RF-cyber takeover as the core mitigation layer, helping protect critical voice, data, and control systems from disruption.​
• Ability to locate and track drone takeoff points and pilot positions, providing actionable intelligence to intercept and prosecute smugglers.​
• EnforceAir2 next-generation performance and versatile deployment kits, supporting 24/7 perimeter protection and targeted coverage of high-risk zones.​
• EnforceAir PLUS multilayer configuration that integrates RF-cyber, radar, and optional smart RF-effector jamming for facilities requiring escalated, yet controlled, defenses.​

DEPLOYMENT OPTIONS AND INTEGRATION FOR CORRECTIONAL ENVIRONMENTS

EnforceAir systems can be deployed as fixed installations to provide continuous coverage of perimeters and yards, or as mobile and tactical configurations to support patrols, response teams, and temporary operations. Vehicle-mounted, backpack, and stationary kits enable different vantage points and coverage patterns tailored to each facility’s layout and risk profile.​

Open APIs and integration interfaces allow EnforceAir2, and EnforceAir PLUS to connect with prison security management systems, command-and-control platforms, and multi-sensor fusion environments, enhancing coordination between correctional staff, law enforcement, and investigative units.​

WHY CORRECTIONAL AGENCIES CHOOSE D-FEND SOLUTIONS

EnforceAir systems are trusted by government, defense, and law enforcement organizations worldwide, and they are already deployed to protect sensitive sites such as airports, borders, major events, and prisons. D-Fend Solutions is recognized for its safe, controlled, and intelligence-rich approach to counter-drone operations, which is critical where any disruption can have immediate consequences.​

With continuous software and protocol updates to EnforceAir2, and EnforceAir PLUS, D-Fend Solutions helps correctional agencies stay ahead of rapidly evolving drone threats and smuggling tactics. Facilities can strengthen security, reduce violence, protect staff and inmates, and maintain operational continuity, even as drone activity increases.​

KEEP CONTRABAND OUT. KEEP CONTROL IN.

Close the sky to contraband with counter-drone technology built for the realities of prison security. Learn how EnforceAir systems can protect your facilities from drone-enabled smuggling.

Contact D-Fend Solutions to schedule a demo and speak with C-UAS experts about your specific correctional requirements.