Social Security Administration (SSA)

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They usually use a privite security company. Try looking for a privite security company in your county. They are part of the FPS but the FPS dont normally secure the property.
 

on2baja

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Good day all-

Most info above is correct. The Federal Protective Service is the federal law enforcement agency that provides protection for the majority of federal buildings in the country (not just SSA, but IRS, US Courthouses along with the USMS, FBI buildings, FAA control towers, and so many more). FPS has responsibility for approx 9000 federal buildings or pieces of federal property, but they only have about a thousand or so police officers (or Inspectors) to protect everything. They rely on a massive Contract Guard (hereafter CG) program to help them provide protection/security at all of these places. The vast majority of posts for these CG's are at SSA's, since there are so many of them across the country. I would say that most of these posts are single guard locations, although there is a move happening right now where SSA is closing some offices and posting 2 or more guards at the remaining offices that stay open. Part of the reason is because of the increase in traffic that will happen, and party due to the fact that many SSA's are starting to employ metal detectors and x-ray machines (things that are sorely needed unfortunately). Per FPS (actually Homeland Security, which FPS is under) policy is that there will be one CG per screening device.

The vast majority of these CG's are not from local, little mom and pop security companies, but rather from massive government security companies. Securitas, Vendtech, Master Security, etc., but there are many others. Very few posts in the past have had radios, although that is starting to change. Relatively speaking, there are very few posts that have radios that go to an FPS dispatcher of some sort. Some multi-guard posts have radios that each guard is issued for shift communications. Some SSA posts have a set of FRS radios where the supervisor of that office can get a hold of the CG during his/her shift. The above poster who suggests utilizing Close Call (or Signal Stalker in the case of GRE radios) is probably giving the best advice. If I were to do that, however, I would do that JUST off the federal property you are interested in listening to. An over-eager CG (there are many of them) might get a little anxious if he/she sees someone with a scanner on actual federal property. Even if you are off property, a professional, alert CG (and there are many of them too) would call it in to the local PD/SO or even the FPS Mega Center for investigation. Just my opinion....
 

KC2zZe

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on2baja - asking strictly out of curiousity - have you had run-ins with "CGs" that would cause you to caution about them? If so, what exactly were you doing when on a spectrum surveillance mission that would even draw any attention to you? Pointing cantennas at guards talking on portables or toward base station antennas on buildings?

In the twenty five some odd years that I've been positioned (either on foot, mostly in a car) outside of buildings trying to get close call (or, back in the day, Optoelectronics frequency counter) hits, I've only once been approached by security staff, sheriff's deputies, cops, or any other law enforcement types detailed to protect buildings I was curious about - and that was because I was parked in a loading zone (at a mall somewhere in New Jersey, so the roving patrol pulls up and says "You gotta move the car." "Yes, sir." and away I went). Needless to say, I didn't do that again (or hydrants, fire lanes, handicap spaces, etc.).

I'd love to know what moves are done / words said / looks given that actually has caused attention to be drawn, so that I can avoid them in the future.
 
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on2baja

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KC2zZe-

I have been a CG for about a decade now.... As far as you mentioning all of the sites you had monitored, were any of them sites that fell under the protection of FPS, such as SSA's that the OP had asked about?
Some of the FPS-protected properties do not allow any monitoring,scanning,recording,or photography equipment on any part of the federally controlled property, thus my suggestion of staying JUST off site to monitor.
 

AZScanner

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You could probably wait out there for DAYS before you hear anything. Back in my college days I worked as a security guard at some of these types of offices. The posts were so quiet that they didn't even issue us radios. The supervisor would wander by shortly after each shift change to be sure the last guy got relieved. Other than that, we were pretty much just supposed to stand there and look "official". Lunch and breaks were whenever we wanted to take them, so long as we were still somewhere onsite and visible to people coming in the front. Talk about boring. I can't imagine how much more boring it would be to sit somewhere nearby waiting for a transmission on a scanner. ZZZZZZZ.

-AZ
 

MacGnG

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I got a few frequencies. Mostly standard 2 way radio channels and the regional FPS from Philly. I'm there all day, every weekday :p so it didn't take long to find something. I gotta keep listening for a few more weeks to verify who is on what frequency, but I think I got em all. I also picked up McDonald's drive thru window down the street… LOL. Thanks for the help folks.
 

gesucks

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First, since the OP is asking about the Woodlawn SSA, this is the headquarters and not under FPS but SSA protection.

on2baja - if you are a CG for FPS then I am sure you are aware of DHS Report Number HQ-IB-012-2010.

This specifically advises FPS that "absent reasonable suspicion or probable cause, law enforcement and security personnel must allow individuals to photograph the exterior of federally owned or leased facilities from publicly accessible spaces"
 

on2baja

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AZScanner-

Probably not much has changed since you were doing that job back in the day, although there is a current movement to have many more multi-guard posts manning SSA sites, which will probably increase potential radio traffic for those that are interested in listening to it.

MacGnG-

If you have the FPS main frequencies then those should be interesting ones to scan in your area. FPS units are typically dispatched out of one of many FPS Mega Centers scattered across the county. I would assume you could hear a lot more traffic on those channels than you probably could at individual SSA (or other FPS) sites.

gesucks-

If you had read my earlier post, you would have noticed the word ''SOME" as the first word of the last sentence. Good luck trying to get a camera or scanning equipment into a federal courthouse, FAA facility, or FBI Office where FPS (or other types of) CG's are present.

The directive you mentioned is old news. It came out quite awhile ago and is definitely the current policy in place. It does NOT apply to interior areas of the building even where the public is allowed to be. Filming/Recording in the interior area is generally limited to the lobby area, and even that is limited to the press who must get prior authorization to do that and must be accompanied by agency management. Of course it goes without saying that all equipment and news personnel go through the normal screening process of X-ray/Magnetometer.

Filming the exterior of a federal property is definitely allowed for those who do not have a nefarious purpose. However, I guarantee you that the person doing the filming/recording while on actual federal property will be contacted and a good deal of attention paid to who they are, what vehicle they are driving, etc. My opinion of the OP is that they were not looking to get involved in any of that type of contact, but rather just wanted to listen to any radio traffic that might be coming from that particular SSA. Thus my suggestion to do that just off property.

SSA Headquarters under SSA protection? First, what does SSA protection even mean? Second, to the best of my knowledge, FPS CG's still have the contract for that facility. Unless the current company that has the contract has lost it (possible but very rare), the option years on that contract carry it all the way to 2018.
 

mainetrunk

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They got a tower in Portsmouth. 408.200 p25, mostly encrypted, I dont listen much, but i have heard them say clear of JFK, and other gov places. You used to be able to go to the post office/ SSA building -in and out. Right after 9/11, I was in portsmouth walking to the park, and I needed to use a toilet. So I go into the post office/SSA door and theres 5 old guys in white suites, badges, radio's... I try to avoid them to go to the toilet, and they step in front of me and ask me to go thru the detector. I says " I gotta go !" They grabbed me by both arms and threw me out. on the way out I says, " I dont gotta go THAT bad. " Like a joke.. Til I saw the door I just came thru.. Since then, Portsmouth is just a well watched city. Those guys didnt know me, did their job. God bless America
 

MacGnG

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all of the frequencies i found are 400-415 and 460-470 .. still not sure what they all are yet.
 

mainetrunk

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460--470 is business and public safety, 400-415 is fed.
460-470, is split, 460-465 is the input to 465--470
example--463.775 input, 468.775 is the out put.
Everytime, freq heard 465-470
460--465 would be the input, except for simplex systems, like your water tower telling the water dept, how much water is in tank
 

MacGnG

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well i think i have the main frequencies labeled in my scanner. lost some of them when i forgot to upload from the 436 to sentinel. but i have the main security and emergency channels. there are a few in the 410 region that I've only heard clicks and beeps on, so I'm not really sure what those are. after more review i'll submit them to the database. thanks for the help and the info.
 

ke5fnb

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The SSA office in my area hires a private security firm. Those guards use consumer grade FRS/GMRS trasceivers.
 
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