Ive been in LE a long time. Officers never cared and the administration never even considered police scanners until the online streaming began. This became and is a MAJOR selling point for Motorola. In their sales meetings and proposals they document in detail online scanner feeds and how any criminal with zero radio or scanner knowledge can monitor live police response to violent crimes, etc. blah blah.
We should have kept the hobby within the scanner heads. Letting people listen who dont have to buy a scanner...for free is stupid and will eventually lead to widespread total encryption.
The county I grew up in scanning is now totally encrypted end to end, even fire, ems, parks dept, etc. All because Motorola convinced them that thugs were stalking officers using smart phones and targeting them and gangs were listening in and islamic bombers could listen to the fire department routes, etc etc. They paid millions extra for total encryption.
not to mention online streaming widens your agencies' audience. Now your lookout can be across the country, texting or tweeting the local thugs, from another city, state or country.
all this does is fuel the fire for encrypting everything across the board.
LE agencies have known about scanners since two-way radio showed up in police cars and they became available. they also know it takes at least a modicum of technical expertise to program one correctly and operate it. There are limitations on where, and how well they will work (so true with today's digital scanners that suck wind on CQPSK-LSM simulcast systems).
however, any ghetto trash with a Metro PCS Android phone can pay $50 a month and get a free app and tune-in on the po-po.
This has alot more people concerned in law enforcement, and I can't frankly blame them. "Joe Scanner" may occasionally show up at a fire call on his block, but most are harmless, law abiding citizens.
This isn't the case with the 20 year old inner city thug with his gold teeth and gun stuck in his pants hanging to the ground, with his Ghetto PCS phone playing audio from a scanner app. This is the type of person they are concerned about.
and for good reason...