[Scan-DC] Police scanner apps are criminals' latest tool

[Lee Williams]

It is interesting to me that a scanner or information heard on one has never 
been responsible for the death or injury to a law enforcement officer but 
firearms kill them each and every year. Yet I don't see police chiefs and 
sheriffs all clamoring to "ban firearms" as a officer safety issue. My point 
being I believe the only way to slow down the rush to encrypt is by being 
proactive. I am starting to explore finding a state representative who would 
sponsor a law forbidding the encryption of dispatch channels or talkgroups 
for local law enforcement. I can talk about the pro's of inter-operability, 
mutual aid, loss of government openness, loss on the part of the freedom of 
the press/news media so on and so forth. With every Chief and Sheriff having 
opinions about this subject you will not have uniformity nor be able to stop 
the tidal wave of encryption. The most encrypted state in the country which 
is currently Florida will become the norm unless citizens become proactive 
in preserving our ability to listen to dispatch channels. I make a 
distinction between that and ALL other channels,talkgroups or frequencies. 
If an agency wants 100% encryption they should be able to have it except for 
dispatch. Yes then it wouldn't be 100% but you get my drift/meaning!

-----Original Message----- 
From: Andrew Feinberg
Sent: Thursday, January 12, 2012 3:23 PM
To: Alan Henney
Cc: Scan DC
Subject: Re: [Scan-DC] Police scanner apps are criminals' latest tool

Has anyone ever considered writing to the reporters who file this stuff and 
the editors who let It get published without bothering to see if the problem 
is real and if so, see how widespread it is.

As a professional journalist who has covered telecommunications policy and 
as a scanner enthusiast, I find it very hard to believe that scanner apps 
are being regularly used obey criminals to evade police.

I don't see how the transmissions I regularly listen to could give anyone an 
idea of where police officers are. The existence of CAD and vehicle locator 
systems makes the radio an unlikely venue for sensitive operational or 
tactical details.

I suggest that unless we want fearmongering and misinformation to rule the 
day, we need to proactively combat secrecy and scare tactics with verifiable 
truth.

Don't just repost an article like that --  write a letter to the editor as 
well.

Andrew

On Jan 12, 2012, at 12:37 AM, "Alan Henney" <alan at henney.com> wrote:

>
> Government Computer News
>
> January 9, 2012 Monday
>
> Police scanner apps are criminals' latest tool
>
> BYLINE: GCN Staff, Government Computer News
>
> LENGTH: 175 words
>
> What if criminal suspects could gain a leg up on police by listening in on 
> secure law enforcement radio transmissions via smart phones? That's 
> already happening in Maryland, according to ThreatPost.
>
> Law enforcement officials in the state are reporting that "criminal gang 
> members and associates" are using websites such as radioreference.com and 
> mobile apps including the 5-0 Police Radio Scanner to monitor police 
> officers' moves. In a warning issued last month, the Maryland Coordination 
> and Analysis Center said officers in at least one incident had heard their 
> radio transmissions over a suspect's smart phone.
>
> The center warned that suspects can use the information gleaned from the 
> app transmissions to plot their crimes, set up ambushes for police 
> officers, or plan escape routes.
>
> There were at least 20 scanner apps available for download as of 2010, the 
> center reports. One of them, the 5-0, advertises access to several 
> emergency transmissions, including police, fire, aircraft, railroad and 
> marine frequencies, according to the center's warning.
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