Encryption and Scrambling

[stonesfanmk]

Before I spend nearly $500 for a new scanner, I'd like to know the likely-hood of law enforcement encryption and/or scrambling in the Magnolia state. Without getting location specific is there any general information about this issue? My old scanner is basically useless now, and I don't want the same thing to happen to a new one in a year or two. I've searched the forums, but could not come up with an answer. Thanks in advance for any input.
Mike

 

[kma371]

You will need to get location specific, at least to a county to identify what agencies are in that county so you or I can look in the database and identify what if any agencies are noted to be using encryption in the database.

 

[QDP2012]

Before I spend nearly $500 for a new scanner, I'd like to know the likely-hood of law enforcement encryption and/or scrambling in the Magnolia state. Without getting location specific is there any general information about this issue? My old scanner is basically useless now, and I don't want the same thing to happen to a new one in a year or two. I've searched the forums, but could not come up with an answer. Thanks in advance for any input.
Mike

As kma371 mentioned, if you let us know here which systems are of interest, someone here can help clarify whether encryption is currently involved, or possibly if there are plans for encryption in the "near" future. Otherwise, only general answers can be given.

Some items that you can check to determine whether your area-of-interest is currently encrypted or not include:

• RR Wiki: Encrypted Agencies -- this lists (some of the) agencies that are encrypted, state-by-state. This list is manually-updated, and is likely not perfectly current nor complete. Right now, there is nothing listed for MS.
  
  
• If you go to the database, and navigate to your favorite Trunked Radio System, the Talkgroups that are encrypted will (likely) have an "E" in the "Mode" column.
  
  
• If you go to the database, and navigate to your favorite conventional system, often encrypted frequencies will be noted as encrypted in the description.

Hope this helps,

 

[teufler]

If your county has gone to a p25 system, they may not have encryption available as its pretty expensive per radio. If they are using some other radio digital systems, encryption is built in. In that case, if the locals don't want the mortals to hear when they are going to coffee, they probably will encrypt. Scrambling is more an analog thing. There are devices that can handle basic scrambling,installing in the speaker leads. Also many Chinese radios, not scanners have scrambling on them and you could probably monitor with them. Legality or rules, I won't go into that, but other than the database indicating E or normal, no telling what the locals could do. Several locals who have confused their signals have stepped back and gone to normal transmissions other than drug related traffic. Public outcry has caused a more normal audio. Seems larger cities have gone to encryption because authorities think the "bad guys" are monitoring. Fact most "bad guys": don't have the smarts to program thge scanners: we mortals have enough of a time programming. Then the cities think their images appear better as most can not hear the garbage that is going on anymore. Well encrypted, "Gothom City" still has garbage. Little has changed. If you ad to your profile, you general location, like county and state, we can tell you want it going on in your area.

 

[INDY72]

ADP encryption is standard on all P25 systems. It is up to each user to turn it off or on. Tougher protocols such as AES-256 cost a little more, but believe me, if an agency truly needs it, they won't hesitate to purchase it. On the Statewide TRS, the MSWIN, there currently is only a little encryption in use, and only 2/3 agencies have it on their dispatch TG's. The only completely encrypted state agency is MBN, and they are running AES-256. MHP has as far as I know, only 5 or so fully encrypted TG's, and only one of which we have on the DB so far. MBI as far as I can tell is running on the MHP TG's, and would be the main users of encryption due to the sensitive nature of their operations.

On the conventional side, the only full time encryption in use is the Natchez Trace National Parkway Rangers, FBI, some ICE, some USMS, and DEA ops. Depending on what part of the State your in, we can tell you more.