Full Time Encryption to not Encrypted

[MikeyB]

With all the threads about agencies going to encryption on their frequencies or talkgroups I wondered if there were any known instances of an agency that had been using encryption and then stopped. For example a new police chief took over and stopped encrypting the channels or something like that.

 

[brandon]

Indio PD used to run voice inversion scrambling, then went back into clear FM mode for a while until switching over to ERICA TRS. Now they are P25 encrypted along with the rest of the valley (Desert Hot Springs, Cathedral City and Palm Springs).

 

[rescue161]

Camp Lejeune Base PMO (Base Police) used full time DES encryption back in the 90's. I moved away in January 1997 and it was in encrypted 100% of the time. They were using 403-433 MHz Systems Sabers with OTAR modules for DES.

I moved back in 2007 and the system was/is NOT encrypted. They were using Astro Sabers, XTS3000s, XTS2500s and XTS5000s in analog mode. None of their talkgroups are digital and none are encrypted. It's like they took a giant leap backwards. The system will pass P25 and still passes DES encrypted audio on analog radios (Systems Sabers). Not sure why they abandoned encryption.

I was happy, 'cause I remember only being able to hear the hash of the DES "squelch" sound. When I moved away, there was not a scanner on the market that trunk-tracked OBT (VHF/UHF) systems.

They are suppose to be upgrading the system to the newer 380 MHz band (was suppose to happen in 2008), but nothing has changed. It has been nice to listen to them, but I know it'll be short lived as they've done it before and they'll do it again.

 

[Avery93]

Jasper, AL PD went to a conventional P25 system with full time encryption in 2010, and then not even a year later switched back to analog.

Apparently they were told that digital was mandatory, and it HAD to be encrypted. After several interop problems, they switched back to analog last year.

Daily Mountain Eagle - JPD changing radios back to analog

 

[zerg901]

I think I have 2 here at https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet...jQ1SC1XTWhZQVJFMUtYVHd4NUZvd2c&hl=en_US#gid=0 - look at Altus OK and Westbrook ME

Some of the fed agencies seem to have undercover ops in the clear one day but encrypted the next

Mansfield Mass PD was supposed to go back to clear comms after they got a new chief - per a post to (maybe) Scan New England about 24 months ago - I dont think they have made any changes yet