Encryption and the volunteer

[Giddyuptd]

Some places have a structure in place to manage keys and issue stuff out.

Now others have also gone to the use your dispatch or only fire officers or head paramedic have access to law or encrypted unless the entire show is strapped.

Most the time fire and ems cant enter anyway until it's given clear and even then policies of your dispatcher must give the clear regardless if you scan and hear a LE say clear send them in.

So those ones typically in volunteer entities have the chief officers with keyed equipment such as 1 portable and may have the keyed radio mobiles in trucks as needed but take home in most vollie places is chief officers only on portables keyed.

Its ymmv on where you are and mou in place between psaps and agencies.

Of course designated radio techs will have access but you're vetted and vouched with the background stuff. Some may be denied with background from long ago in radio maintenance for public safety. After all what good is a key if the guy keying is a known felon and has questionable crowds on weekend over.

I should add I seen where a analog only county went p25 and p25 aes for law enforcement. In end a deputy fire chief was denied access due to his background given a red flag. The police chiefs board said no and that's all she wrote. When fire went. encrypted he was pretty much booted from the dept as he didn't pass the new background requirements as some others. So one must keep that in mind when planning to ever join a public safety volunteer or not. Your actions today may hit you tomorrow or 20 years down road.

 

[Giddyuptd]

Most volunteer agencies are using mobile phone apps also.

Many who are volunteer with mismanaged budgets or cheap out using 700mhz will have the edispatch or other flavor apps then dispatch sees the push reply responding direct or to Station. Apparatus will have a mobile in it engineers can radio in. Normal Joe vollies will prob utilize a simplex fire ground portable off the other stuff so you're correct seen that done as well or those with some monies to throw out been using wave for their phones into a system.

 

[SurgePGH]

I used play store to look for active 911 but it was not among the first screen choices, found out it's 'active alert' to find the app.

Active 911 requires your department to subcsribe and the 911 center to relay the info to Active911 to then be sent to your departments subscriber units. See active911.com

 

[2154]

To the original question, that's going to vary by region, resources, funding, etc. In all of the departments I'm familiar with, once a member is off of their probationary period, they are issued a radio. On the few counties local, on the county that is running strapped encryption, their radios are encrypted just like the paid departments, LEO/SO, and EMS. Paging is currently in the clear as the majority are using Motorola pagers still which don't support the trunked system. Once this is addressed, full encryption is coming. For the county that is not strapped, the policy is the same on issued radios. They are still programmed by a sole source who also handles the encryption keys. Most departments do use a CodeMessaging, IAR, FirstDue, Active911, etc but there is often times a slight lag with these services which hurts the response times. Not to mention ones such as FirstDue require a constant network connection which doesn't work when you have spotty or no cellular coverage.
Zello (RoIP) is also in place though not ideal for transmitting as there is a significant delay when linked back into the systems & also obviously requires the cell service.