[Scan-DC] [Montana] Billings Police to begin using encrypted transmissions

[Dewey3]

Lindsey Blanton strikes again!


On Tue, May 27, 2014 at 11:00 AM, Blair Thompson <b_thom at juno.com> wrote:

> There are comments.
>
>
> http://billingsgazette.com/news/local/billings-police-to-begin-using-encrypted-transmissions/article_d4559921-a818-5a4d-8381-32da46c5e4f1.html
>
> Cutline for illustration: Fleet mechanic Lee Hoke removes a radio for the
> installation of a new Tait TM9400 radio in a Billings Police Department
> pickup Thursday.
>
> May 23, 2014 12:30 am  •  By Chris Cioffi
>
> The Billings Police Department will no longer be broadcasting its radio
> transmissions between officers and from officers to dispatchers on
> frequencies that can be picked up by police scanners.
>
> The police bands on Friday will go from broadcasting clear speech to
> scrambled electronic tones that can only be deciphered by units programmed
> to unscramble the transmissions, said BPD Chief Rich St. John.
>
> The $831,605 purchase of 453 new Tait 9400 radios — 303 for police and
> other department uses and 150 for firefighters — was approved unanimously
> by the City Council on Feb. 10, enabling officers to exclude curious ears
> from their transmissions.
> ....
>
> Officials cited officer safety and the transmission of confidential
> criminal justice information during police operations as primary reasons
> for the switch, St. John said.
>
> During one traffic stop an officer observed a suspect using an application
> on his smartphone to listen to scanner chatter.
>
> “It could hear our radio traffic, so it basically compromises what we’re
> trying to do,” St. John said. “People out there in scanner land will know
> our movements and know our tactics. It’s just a pure officer safety issue.”
>
> City Administrator Tina Volek also cited a 2012 incident where 29-year-old
> Michael Brandon exchanged shots with officers at a convenience store before
> he was shot by officers at the Dude Rancher Lodge after a chase.
>
> “The man was lying in wait when officers walked in,” Volek said. “He was
> with friends when they came to the Holiday, and the friends had a police
> radio and they were listening to everything that was happening.”
>
> She could not for certain say that hearing scanner traffic played a role
> because he was shot and killed, but “people in his party were aware of the
> police officer’s action, and that is a direct threat to the officers.”
>
> Volek said a growing criminal element in Billings puts officers at more
> risk than ever, and encrypting signals eliminates the possibility of
> criminals listening into transmissions giving away officer movements,
> putting them in danger.
>
> She said that a criminal could hypothetically obtain a scanner easily and
> cheaply. Digital scanners cost about $460 in Billings stores.
>
> “If you’ve got a major drug operation, $400 is a piece of cake,” she said.
>
> Using cellular phones as an alternative to encryption for handling
> sensitive information is not practical, because the new radios are clearer,
> especially on the West End where cellular service can be spotty.
>
> Volek said the encrypted signals shouldn’t come as a surprise to the
> community. Encryption has been on the table as a possibility for several
> years.
>
> She referenced an article in The Billings Gazette which ran on Feb. 8,
> 2013, reporting the possibility of encryption when the dispatch center
> upgraded their communication systems from analog to digital in compliance
> with Federal Communications Commission regulations.
> ....
>
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