Not long ago everyone who owned a police scanner in Cumberland County lost their investment overnight.  A decision was made to ‘encrypt’ the police/fire/rescue radio transmission.

There has not been an official statement from the City nor the County as to why this was done.  But it has upset many citizens who relied on their scanners to keep up with emergency information that could be a life-saver.

Many times a suspect who could be dangerous is on the loose somewhere in the county and citizens could know about the danger from hearing it on the scanners.  Or highway closures that could prevent a traffic jam if people knew where not to drive.  Or brush fires that could be approaching their homes. Scanners are a much needed and helpful tool for citizens in times of emergencies.

Police and Deputies have private frequencies they can go to that cannot be heard by the public scanners and they use those when needed.  But now, all the frequencies are scrambled for no apparent reason.  Even local news agencies no longer have the ability to hear pertinent information needed to keep the public informed. Tuesday at 5 pm,  the City Council is going to be discussing the recent encryption of the scanner frequencies.  The release only says Councilman Art Gernt will lead the discussion. No indication if the Council is going to take under consideration reversing the encryption or not.  Nonetheless, anyone who has purchased a scanner, which can cost from $200 – $500, lost that investment instantly when the local government encrypted the signals.