Encryption and Digital Question

[usmiladim]

Good Afternoon

Silly question but being newer at this I thought I’d ask. Is encrypted and digital the same thing or does It mean that it can not be heard at all if it’s encrypted?
Thank you
Milan

 

[nd5y]

They are not the same thing.
A digital voice channel can be clear or encrypted.
If it's encrypted you can't hear it on a scanner.

 

[usmiladim]

And are Police and Fire starting to go that route or is it rare?

Thanks again

 

[Enjoi19]

And are Police and Fire starting to go that route or is it rare?

Thanks again

Police very often switching to full encryption. Fire, sometimes. Very much dependant on the region. Some places are wide open, some are closed tight.

 

[usmiladim]

Is is more common for police to be encrypted or is it also the fire department’s? I enjoy listening to Squad calls so I’m hoping they stay open down the road.

 

[Whiskey3JMC]

Is is more common for police to be encrypted or is it also the fire department’s? I enjoy listening to Squad calls so I’m hoping they stay open down the road.

Law enforcement communications are far more commonly encrypted than Fire/EMS. If you take a look at any trunked radio system in the database, looking at the "mode" column. Modes DE (or TE) denote full-time encryption, whereas modes De (or Te) with a lowercase 'e' denote part-time encryption enabled upon demand

 

[usmiladim]

Thank you to everyone for your help, I appreciate it.

 

[DJ11DLN]

Kind of depends on where. In my home area there is very little encryption so far and at this point I'm not hearing anything about agencies making plans to start using it, or ones who have encrypted TAC/OPS/whatever planning to expand it either. And one local SD that had one of the latter in the past has put it back in the clear.