The dangers of encrypting Chicago police radio transmissions — what to know

Fox 32 Chicago ^ | Dec. 12, 2022 | staff

[Leaning Right]

Chicago media companies are at odds with the city over a plan to encrypt live police radio transmissions. Those companies, including FOX 32, believe this action will put your safety at risk.

Ahead of this encryption process, which has already begun by the way, we asked to meet in person with the city to address our concerns. Despite multiple attempts, Mayor Lori Lightfoot flatly refuses to even discuss the matter.

[Leaning Right]

Here’s yet another example of how Democrats want to deny information to the public. Open and accountable, not.

[srmanuel]

Actually, I was surprised to hear that Chicago PD wasn’t encrypted a long time ago, most major police forces around the country have encrypted their radio traffic for years.

I live in Jacksonville, FL and their PD have been encrypted for at least 10 years.

Police forces all over Florida, the majority much smaller than Jacksonville are also encrypted.

I own a fairly sophisticated scanner and all the police forces around me are encrypted, fire departments are usually not encrypted, but police forces around the country are almost universally encrypted.

[deoetdoctrinae]

The same thing happened not too long ago here in Knoxville Tennessee. Also, when the city needed to hire a new chief of police recently, they hired an outside firm to handle the process and instructed them to keep no written records so that no one in the public or media could find out what went into the hiring process.

Leftist politicians are happiest when the public is totally in the dark. Makes it easier for the roaches to scurry around freely.

[chopperk]

This idea must have come from Lori Light in the Loafers.

[bigbob]

Actually this is good. Ever since Motorola rolled out the P25 digital Starcom 21 radio network, cities and counties have been switching to it, which is fine since it provides many advantages. Encryption is an option - the system can be run totally in the clear - but turning on encryption is just too big a temptation for the information-control nazis. It can also be enabled only for specific talk groups if there is justification for keeping some communications private. But many just turn it on and all the private scanners, including P25 digital ones, go silent.

My rural IL city went to 100% encryption for no good reason a few years ago but no one is going to take on the hassle and expense of fighting city hall in court. Chicago has the resources to do so and with luck they can get a court ruling that will apply statewide. Otherwise, another bit of democracy dies in darkness.

[Leaning Right]

> but police forces around the country are almost universally encrypted <

I’m surprised, and disappointed, to hear that. Every police force near me still broadcasts in the open. But I supposed that will eventually change.

I get that there are good reasons for encryptions. However, that must be balanced against the public’s right to know. So, yeah. Encrypt submarine transmissions. But leave police and fire transmissions open.

[jdt1138]

SECRET POLICE cannot stand the public knowing what they are doing. Now the PD can feed out whatever stories they want and get away with it.

[srmanuel]

The exact arguments the news stations are using in Chicago right now were used back when the Jacksonville PD started using encryption over 10 years ago.

There is a legitimate argument to be made about criminals using cheap handheld scanners to listen to where cops were being dispatched to plan even more crimes, etc..

However, from my home I can get listen to the Jacksonville FD and a couple of more FDs in my area.

When radio traffic went digital and things like trunking and talk groups became standard it was only a matter of time before PDs everywhere went encrypted, fortunately FDs are still open for listening.

The downside for geeks like me is the cost of a modern scanner capable of picking up digital systems that are trunked and simulcast has really gone up.

[ConservativeInPA]

Here’s yet another example of how Democrats want to deny information to the public. Open and accountable, not.

And they do it by wasting taxpayer dollars. How much do you want to bet that there are problems with communications with the encryption? It’s not a matter of technology. It’s a matter of lazy ass government employees doing anything right. They fail at all they do.

[PapaBear3625]

The usual reason is so that bad guys with scanners will not be privy to the cops being on their way.

I would like the transmissions to be available on the department’s website, after maybe an hour delay.

[T.B. Yoits]

The same argument the government uses to justify encrypting their communications can be used to justify citizens’ communications via cell phone. Let the illegal FISA searches find nothing but garbled zeros and ones.

[srmanuel]

Encryption works fine, it’s been around in radio communications for years and is done in hardware and tried and true

[Leaning Right]

> How much do you want to bet that there are problems with communications with the encryption? <

Ha! You called it. From the article:

They’ve already started to roll this out, and it’s not good. There are gaps in the transmission, and it’s unreliable and its unsearchable...

[ConservativeInPA]

You missed the point. It’s the lazy ass government employees that can’t do anything right. Not the technology.

[pas]

It is here in a small town in Indiana.

[srmanuel]

But the lazy ass government employees have little to nothing to with setting and running the encryption, as another poster mentioned the encryption is basically an on/off switch

[jaydubya2]

"Mayor Lori Lightfoot flatly refuses to even discuss the matter."

They must have sent a white reporter.

[Boogieman]

“There is a legitimate argument to be made about criminals using cheap handheld scanners to listen to where cops were being dispatched to plan even more crimes, etc..”

There’s also a legitimate public interest in monitoring people we grant special privileges, like police, to make sure they are being honest. Having their radios be public is an easy way to crowdsource some of that.

[ConservativeInPA]

Get with the program here. Government employee are scum. If it can fail, they will make sure it will fail. Another poster also said they are having problems with the system. No surprise. Take every opportunity to attack the enemy. Stop being a pussy. Or are you employed by government? By the way I worked my entire career in IT. Turnkey is never turnkey. Configurable rarely meets all the requirements for an organization. Every system is subject to failure.

[Myrddin]

My wife is a police/fire/EMS dispatcher. Her radios are the P25 style. Normal traffic is operated unencrypted. The have some "tac" channels that are encrypted. Typically, the "tac" channels are used with SWAT for a high risk operation to prevent the bad guys from monitoring the operation. For specific ops, they may choose radio silence. One officer almost got shot as he was crawling on the ground below a window. Radio traffic on his handheld betrayed his presence.

I have a trunking scanner, so I can listen to local traffic including when my wife is dispatching. I don't listen often. My old analog scanners still have value for non-digital traffic.