Criminal organizations and militant groups in Southeast Asia are increasingly using commercially available drones for illicit activities such as narcotics smuggling, prison contraband delivery, and surveillance, according to a report published by The Diplomat. The analysis, which compiled open-source data on 22 incidents up to August 2026, attributes the trend to the wide accessibility and low cost of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) drone technology.
The report found that approximately 86% of the documented incidents were linked to criminal activity, with a primary focus on narcotics. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has also reported that small commercial drones are being employed for cross-border drug smuggling, particularly along the borders of Thailand with Malaysia, Myanmar, and Laos.
Specific incidents cited include the first recorded case of drone-based drug smuggling into a Malaysian prison in August 2024. The Malaysian Home Ministry subsequently noted 55 such cases that year. Authorities have also reported attempts to smuggle other contraband, such as tobacco, into prisons in Malacca and Kelantan. In June 2020, authorities in Singapore and Malaysia dismantled a syndicate that used a drone to transport narcotics from Malaysia into Singapore.
Beyond smuggling, the report details how criminal groups use drones for surveillance to monitor law enforcement activities. In Vietnam, authorities apprehended two individuals who used a drone to deliver drugs and collect payments.
Thai authorities have conducted several large-scale seizures of drones and related components. A December 2025 raid on a warehouse resulted in the seizure of 2,500 drones, followed by the confiscation of 2,083 more from two warehouses near Bangkok in March 2026. These operations led to arrests, including four Myanmar nationals suspected of trafficking Chinese-made industrial drones into Myanmar. In another case, a Myanmar national was arrested in July 2026 while attempting to smuggle four first-person view (FPV) drones, described as “advanced systems,” across the border.
The report also touches on the use of drones in regional conflicts, noting that trafficking networks supply both state and non-state actors. The Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Centre (ACLED) documented over 2,100 drone strikes by non-state armed groups in Myanmar by 2024, stating it had “significantly reshaped battlefield strategy.” Separately, U.K.-based Conflict Armament Research found that high-precision European components were diverted to Myanmar through commercial channels.
The use of drones by terrorist groups in the region was first documented during the 2017 siege of Marawi in the Philippines, where an Islamic State-affiliated group used them for surveillance. Since then, authorities in Malaysia and Indonesia have reported several plots involving drones. In 2016, Malaysian officials reported uncovering a plan to use a drone in an attack on a police headquarters in Kuala Lumpur, though no drone was procured.
In Indonesia, authorities found a drone in the possession of a Jemaah Islamiyah-linked cell in October 2020. In September 2024, seven individuals were arrested for allegedly planning an attack, and a small commercial drone was found in their possession. Indonesian court documents also revealed a syndicate that attempted to smuggle drone components to militants in Syria.
