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The end of police scanners? Encrypted communications coming
A mandate from the federal government means police scanners will be encrypted by October. That goal is police safety, according to the government, but it will mean one fewer opportunity for news organizations to track police.
(FOX 2) - Police scanners have often been the first sign of news that is breaking. The tool has been a popular mechanism for news agencies and members of the public interested in tracking anything from traffic crashes to shootings and other major emergencies.
But these days, police scanners are going silent.
The ramifications of police agencies switching to encrypted scanners could be widespread — and it's angering many who rely on the devices.
Police scanners going encrypted
Gone are the days of specialized equipment that could track police operations in real time. And while scanner traffic is currently available on mobile apps, it won't be for long.
That's because of a federal directive advising police to move their communications behind a firewall, away from public ears.
What they're saying:
And it's not just news organizations that will be missing out. Many accounts on social media also track the presence of police to keep the public informed.
Among those is Abe, who is behind Metro Detroit News. He's unhappy with the FBI-mandated scanner rule that's coming in October.
"We inform the public when there’s breaking news. Anytime there's serious incidents like crashes, shootings, pursuits, all types of incidents. That’s what the public wants to know. They want to know what’s going on in the community," he said.
He relies on the scanner traffic to know where to go.
"I wouldn’t say it’s gonna put us out of business, but it’s gonna definitely hinder our operation," he said. "All we wanna do is report what’s happening in the community and help inform the community."
Dig deeper:
When presented with the argument that police intend to use the scanner traffic to protect the public and prevent personal information from going out, Abe said there is an easy solution around that.
"If that’s the case, they could use a secondary channel. So the primary channel - which is dispatch - they give information about what's happening and then if there is private information, they switched to a secondary channel to provide that information that's encrypted," said Abe.
What's next:
The date for required encryption is Oct. 26.
Abe says he'll be protesting the rule and speaking to lawmakers and attorneys about what options are available.
The Source: An interview with a photojournalist was cited for this story.