MRT to go Digital encrypted

[mark99]

MRT teams are been advised to switch to digitally encrypted radios over eavesdropping fears .
Holme valley MRT have already followed the advice and will switch from Monday.
It is thought Motobro with encryption will be used.

[Minus1]

A sad mindset for voluntary organizations that depend upon public donations.
Sadly, there there are plenty of paranoid people in this country who like to encourage hysteria…

[thelad]

Yes they have just got new Simoco XD hands to use on DMR and I would think Calder valley will be next.

[Snapey75]

Yes they are using simoco dmr radios which looking at the spec have a 40bit encryption and a aes 256 bit one as an option. There is a new common dmr tier 2 search and rescue bandplan but have not seen that yet. Maybe hope that encryption may not be used and keep clear for interoperability purposes. We can only hope,
Neil

[mark99]

Privacy and encryption is the only reason for the switch and the sets have been sourced and tested for unbreakable encryption, radios will include from what I was told 4 shared channels UK wide for inter ops with common encryption codes.
Another one gone.

[Metradio]

Should be interesting mixing different makes of radios..
Also this effectively excludes RAYNET from playing with the grown ups..

Mike

[AndrewIrvine]

Not sure if it's related, but on June 6th I found and posted this.

"161.88125, Team Working Channel 854 in Mountain Rescue, coming up as a DMR Cap+9 on various channels. Just general non specific chat just now to identity the user"

[G4RMT]

Let's face it - every time anyone buys new radios they are going to encrypt. So many people now very aware of data protection, and giving out personal information without taking care of it will push people to encryption simply because it's a sales technique. I've sold quite a few systems in the last year by pushing this very thing. The ease of listening in is what is not understood, and when people have it pointed out to them - they move quickly. These are the same people fitting computer screen filters to stop others reading their screens, and having policies on what can be said within earshot of the general public.

Organisations do not want people listening in to their operations - and it's ignorance that people do it that works for the scanner listener. Ignorance is fading out and people are starting to realise so the question now would be "Why would you not want your new radio system to be secure and private?" The users have no problem, practically, with encryption - it's transparent. As for Raynet, it doesn't matter. If the people they work with need Raynet to link into their system, they'll provide access details and all will continue. Raynet operation on ham bands can't be encrypted within the licence terms, can it? So any message passing they carry out has to be in the clear anyway. Airwave worked perfectly well with non-professional user services, they just hand over a terminal and the Police can talk to the County Council or whoever. People who use Mountain Rescue radio want reliable, affordable communications. The management want legal compliance with Data protection Law, and of course PRIVACY - they simply (like the Police) want who knows operational information to be restricted. Make perfect sense really. With it not being a cost option - what reason would they have to NOT encrypt? Are there any disadvantages to privacy?

My local gym have new radios, I doubt they asked for encryption, but it's turned on! My digital hire radios have it turned on. Initially because I cloned some from a radio I'd experimented with, and didn't notice. Rather than reprogram those when I added another couple for a job, I enabled encryption in those too. I can't think of any reason to waste any time turning it off now - and as new ones get programmed I enter the same code. I'm not doing it to prevent listening, I'm not even doing it because anyone requested it - I'm doing it because I can.

Scanning is going to be less and less a hobby interest - unless you are only really interested in air or marine I suppose.

[Metradio]

.... As for Raynet, it doesn't matter. If the people they work with need Raynet to link into their system, they'll provide access details and all will continue. Raynet operation on ham bands can't be encrypted within the licence terms, can it? ....

Raynet have permission to encrypt under certain circumstances, the problem is they use so many makes and models, compatibility is pretty non existant with encryption..

Mike

[thelad]

Bit off topic but how much does encryption being active effect the battery of a handheld?