New FleetNet system and scanning implications

When I read the article I was more concerned about the new radio system scheduled for the spring of 2019 and what that will mean for our hobby.

MB

That shouldn't be a surprise.... there have been many discussions on here about Fleetnet 2.0... It was originally slated for somewhere around now (2017) so any extra years will just be a bonus at this point.

Im pretty sure we know what the new system will mean for the hobby ,..However to me ,..I would ask ,..what problems have been encountered so far not being fully encrypted ? I mean they already have everything sensitive like drug squads or whatever encrypted ,plates & stuff can be done over mdt ,..so why not leave main dispatch open .& have all the extra eyes of the public to call in about anything they may be looking for,..it's a huge force multiplier ,.. ,..so why would they want to lose that ?

The counter question would be - why not encrypt? There's literally zero reason to stay in the clear these days, especially with the cost of encryption being extremely low. Thanks to certain factors, they'd be negligent NOT to encrypt IMHO.

well I would say because ,..you can comply with all laws ,..still have encrypted channels for sensitive tg's but the reasons for leaving main dispatch open would be ,..It's a force multiplier ,..Imagine they are looking for drunk driver ,..missing person ,..or suspect vehicle ,..having that many more eyes ,with the awareness of whats going on ,..able to report location & direction in real time severely limits a suspects ability to move freely ,..that itself is huge ,..It also promotes trust , cooperation & transparency with the public ,..these are all benefits you lose ,..as far as " but the criminal could listen " ,..in reality I think thats pretty rare ,..but even so ,..with the entire city listening they are far outnumbered by people on the lookout for them & reporting their location ,..their ability to move freely becomes severely limited ,.. sometimes they are busy ,..& cannot respond right away ,.but if reports come in about sightings & direction of travel ,..it reduces the chance of escape ,..Also for example,.. awareness of whats going on helps people avoid situations ,.for the years before our force went encrypted there have been several times drunk drivers were reported heading down the route we take home from work ,right when we were leaving ,..we avoided the area & took a different route ,...how does having that info encrypted benefit anyone other than the drunk driver ,..whos chances of being stopped would increase if people knew the description to report ,...I see no real benefit of keeping people un aware of whats going on around them & isolating yourself from the public ,.Now if we were operating Warez mexico,..Columbia etc ,..I might think differently ,..this is Canada ,..though ,..& full blanket encryption is just not necessary ,..& in my opinion helps criminals get away ,..& I think there is more benefits to all involved if at least main dispatch is left open ,.. .but then ,..I dont sell radios & upgrades ,,,

needs ,..more ,..cowbell

slicerwizard said:

needs ,..more ,..cowbell

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<tee-hee!> <good one>

Folks, I see this debate going down the path which often ends to thread being locked. Whatever will happen, will. Please give it a rest.

Dave

Forts said:

That shouldn't be a surprise.... there have been many discussions on here about Fleetnet 2.0... It was originally slated for somewhere around now (2017) so any extra years will just be a bonus at this point.

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They started rolling out Fleet net in 2002 but it wasn't until the latend summer 2006 that the MOH for London CACC north to switch over.

This was recently sent to me as I am a government employee and was tasked with taking inventory of my sites radio infrastructure, and was given this backround:

I think this is a few years away guys....


The Government Mobile Communications Branch (Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services) is leading a large scale procurement for all OPS Ministries which will :

o** Provide highly reliable, available and scalable Public Safety Radio Services

o** Ensure that Ontario is provided with emerging and next generation public safety technology

o** Leverage satellite radio technology to augment network coverage

o** Replace, reuse or strengthen aging infrastructure and network electronics

o** Replace Ministry user equipment

o** Provide extended coverage

o** Replace the existing MNRF Low band VHF radio network with a High band VHF radio network


as I'm not directly involved with this project maybe some can take more info from this then I did,

also on this email was this

The implementation of this project is not imminent but the procurement posting is.

Take what you can from this. maybe I can answer some questions from this.

exkalibur said:

The counter question would be - why not encrypt? There's literally zero reason to stay in the clear these days

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As a firefighter, I specifically do not want encryption on my channels. If one of my crews' radios ****s out its encryption key and can't get a channel grant at the moment they need to call a mayday, they have no comms. I'm not willing to take that risk.

Jay911 said:

As a firefighter, I specifically do not want encryption on my channels. If one of my crews' radios ****s out its encryption key and can't get a channel grant at the moment they need to call a mayday, they have no comms. I'm not willing to take that risk.

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Thats another one I dont understand ,..Im seeing more fire tg's go enc ,..it has been said its for things like if they have to enter an apt or something & need to say the door codes ,..but if someone wanted the door codes ,.they would sit outside with binoculars or some other method ,..they would not purchase a digital radio learn how to use it ,,program it & hope for a fire at a target building ,.. I still think its more benefit to the opp to stay open especially with the highways they patrol ,..everyone aware of drunk driver vehicle that can report its location is a huge benefit to me , I dont see how keeping that info to the few units looking for it & the dispatcher ,..benefits anyone

Jay911 said:

As a firefighter, I specifically do not want encryption on my channels. If one of my crews' radios ****s out its encryption key and can't get a channel grant at the moment they need to call a mayday, they have no comms. I'm not willing to take that risk.

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Kind of a moot point since we're discussing Fleetnet 2.0 in Ontario which will not have any fire agencies on it.

Whats that going to mean for the current fire depts on fleetnet right now? And the MTO snow plow fellers? I can see the plow guys going on either OnQue or the ConnectPlus system

I'm not sure if there are any fire departments still on Fleetnet? I was told all non-government agencies would not be allowed to transition.
As far as the plows go, I'm sure they would move to Fleetnet since they are contracted by the government.

Go figure. Wasn't the plan originally to have everyone on Fleetnet? Police, Fire, EMS, etc?

That was Bell's plan to generate revenue. Didn't work out so good.