Northern Ohio MARCS Security Incident?

[laidback]

Ive posted on this story somewheres else if I recall but the main deal is these guys were the most whackerific whackers. This went on for 2 years before they were caught

The main guy had a security company, as you can see from the photos, they were charged with impersonation as well as breaking onto the trunked radio system. These guys were entitled to think they could use the system for themselves, they stole radios or otherwise got access from someone affiliated from a PD and cloned the radios also acquiring encryption keys and loaded up their own personal radios with police encryption keys and stole radio IDs from the agency to appear as legitimate radios on the system and used them for themselves

The second part is they bought more radios and sold those radios to their buddies and were parading around on the system using it for themselves stealing airtime and listening to now unencypted police transmissions. In the end they recovered or inhibited hundreds of unauthorized radios on the system and arrested a bunch of people

I think this is what you reference. :

Six charged in pirated police radio investigation

Five men have been arrested and a sixth is at large after a yearlong investigation into pirated and clone public safety radios. Most of those accused work

www.cantonrep.com

 

[DualReverse]

The reasons for encryption are valid, even though scanner listeners may not agree.

There are requirements that were agreed to when agencies started accessing criminal justice information systems, terminal systems, databases, etc.

This isn't a new requirement, agencies agreed to this a long time ago. It's just now starting to be enforced.

I don't disagree sir, but agencies agree to a lot of things by signing on the proverbial line, like using plain standard English on the radio, or the ITU alphabet. But, we all know most agencies run afoul, and there's never any repercussion when it comes time to award grant funding.

 

[Pezking]

Ohio should have required radio authentication when they switched to ASTRO25. Every radio needed to be touched when they decommissioned their Smartzone system, not requiring radio authentication from the very beginning was a glaring oversight.

 

[belvdr]

Ohio should have required radio authentication when they switched to ASTRO25. Every radio needed to be touched when they decommissioned their Smartzone system, not requiring radio authentication from the very beginning was a glaring oversight.

Hindsight is always 20/20. Learning from their mistakes is the key takeaway.

 

[chrismol1]

Ohio should have required radio authentication when they switched to ASTRO25. Every radio needed to be touched when they decommissioned their Smartzone system, not requiring radio authentication from the very beginning was a glaring oversight.

For real! I don't think they were expecting something as crazy as these guys, taking over their own encrypted talkgroups and selling subscribers on the system!!! I've never heard of something so brazen. Looks like radio authentication is 75 bucks, I believe MARCS is one of the largest systems in the country. Thats a lot of 75 bucks they have to now forcefully take into consideration because of these bafoons, even though thats one of the more cheaper options

 

[kf8yk]

Ohio should have required radio authentication when they switched to ASTRO25. Every radio needed to be touched when they decommissioned their Smartzone system, not requiring radio authentication from the very beginning was a glaring oversight.

Radio Authentication was not available when MARCS switched to P25. Radio Authentication was introduced in Astro system version 7.9 and XTS/XTL firmware version R15.

 

[Pezking]

It's a drop in the hat, considering subscriber radios cost upwards of $2000 each.

 

[N8WCP]

For real! I don't think they were expecting something as crazy as these guys, taking over their own encrypted talkgroups and selling subscribers on the system!!! I've never heard of something so brazen. Looks like radio authentication is 75 bucks, I believe MARCS is one of the largest systems in the country. Thats a lot of 75 bucks they have to now forcefully take into consideration because of these bafoons, even though thats one of the more cheaper options

Moto offering special pricing of $138.75 per radio until mid 2022, applies to both XT and APX. However, your XT series must have R15 or higher firmware. If it doesn't, you're looking at a new radio since they won't upgrade the firmware.

 

[rcid1971]

Moto offering special pricing of $138.75 per radio until mid 2022, applies to both XT and APX. However, your XT series must have R15 or higher firmware. If it doesn't, you're looking at a new radio since they won't upgrade the firmware.

Wow, that's a real killer for agencies still using "hand me down" equipment and are now painted into a corner.

 

[chrismol1]

Thats pretty funny. Google showed some old but recent contracts said 75 or 100 bucks for radio authentication. Now that its needed for a large statewide network I don't doubt they'd say $140 haha Motorola!

 

[a388sig2]

I love the agency pivot from giant security holes in the system to let’s deflect & blame this all on one single incident, and use that as the knee-jerk reaction to your original bureaucratic blunder.

 

[N8WCP]

Thats pretty funny. Google showed some old but recent contracts said 75 or 100 bucks for radio authentication. Now that its needed for a large statewide network I don't doubt they'd say $140 haha Motorola!

The contracts may have only listed the cost when purchased with a new radio. The special price they are offering includes the labor to update the radio.

 

[N8WCP]

I love the agency pivot from giant security holes in the system to let’s deflect & blame this all on one single incident, and use that as the knee-jerk reaction to your original bureaucratic blunder.

Curious, what was their "bureaucratic blunder"?