NOTICE OF UNLICENSED OPERATION

[marcspaz]

 

This bubbled up on my local feed today.  I am not sure if this was an honest error or if this dude was legit trying to get into the law enforcement system, but the FCC only sent a no-no letter.  Part of me thinks that if it was an honest error and the person was just trying to repurpose the radio, that's fine... don't do it again.  Another part of me is thinking "he admitted to putting the radio on that frequency himself, which implies some nefarious behavior and he should get more than a warning."

 

Anyway, just a reminder to try not to cause interference when you are attempting to repurpose those older LMR Part 90 radios.

 

https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-410850A1.pdf

Snip of text...

 

Quote

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) received a complaint from the Stafford
County, Virginia Sheriff’s Office (Sheriff) concerning interference to the Stafford County P25 public
safety radio communications system (Stafford County System) operating countywide on certain
exclusively licensed radio frequencies. In June 2024, Agents from the Columbia, Maryland Field Office
of the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau (Bureau) conducted an investigation and determined that the source of
interference to the Stafford County System was a radio transmitting signals in an attempt to self-
authenticate and thereby gain access to the Stafford County System. The signals were emanating from a
handheld Motorola APX7000 two-way radio that generated a unique identification code and had
apparently been illegally programmed to operate on Stafford County System’s licensed frequencies. The
investigation identified you—John T. Calhoun—as the radio’s operator. You stated to Sheriff
investigators that you had programmed the radio with the Stafford County System’s frequencies and that
you were operating the radio at the time it made a self-authentication transmission in an attempt to gain
access to the Stafford County System.

 

[Socalgmrs]

He probably had no clue it would transmit an authentication code and he was trying to use it as a scanner.  or not?   
 

[WRUE951]

53 minutes ago, marcspaz said:

 

This bubbled up on my local feed today.  I am not sure if this was an honest error or if this dude was legit trying to get into the law enforcement system, but the FCC only sent a no-no letter.  Part of me thinks that if it was an honest error and the person was just trying to repurpose the radio, that's fine... don't do it again.  Another part of me is thinking "he admitted to putting the radio on that frequency himself, which implies some nefarious behavior and he should get more than a warning."

 

Anyway, just a reminder to try not to cause interference when you are attempting to repurpose those older LMR Part 90 radios.

 

https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-410850A1.pdf

Snip of text...

 

 

I say an intentional act.   Cities Counties, etc selling off old radios decommision them and clean of all programing. The guy admitted to tuning into a police frequency and also menat he had to tune in the correct PL tones.  A few years ago the same thing happened in our community. After about two days a squad of Hams assisting the cops were able to zero in on the offender.  The FCC in this case was notified after they nailed the guy and according to the news accounts, the FCC handled the problem..  Now days with Public Safety going all digital its almost impossible to breach their systems.  

[amaff]

"illegally programmed" is...certainly a hell of a phrase to use.

[WRUE951]

3 minutes ago, amaff said:

"illegally programmed" is...certainly a hell of a phrase to use.

yup, it's not illegal to 'program'.   rather illegal to transmit on an unauthorized frequency.  

[RIPPER238]

15 minutes ago, WRUE951 said:

I say an intentional act.   Cities Counties, etc selling off old radios decommision them and clean of all programing. The guy admitted to turning tinto a police frequency and also meat he had to tune in the correct PL tones.  A few years ago the same thing happened in our community. After about two days a squad of Hams assisting the cops were able to zero in on the offender.  The FCC in this case was notified after they nailed the guy and according to the news accounts, the FCC handle the problem..  Now days with Public Safety going all digital its almost impossible to breach their systems.  

The all digital systems are at more risk than the old systems IMO, and in more of a catastrophic way. My Son works in MD and there entire digital system was hacked and shut down. Never was an issue with the old system. Wasted so much money going to digital to only end up not even being able to go old school because everything was removed.  

 

I think they would have preferred a random interference. 

[WSEZ864]

Sounds like the violator had better be VERY careful in his response letter to the FCC. Should probably send them a pic of the radio with a bullet hole through it, LOL.

[WRUE951]

40 minutes ago, RIPPER238 said:

The all digital systems are at more risk than the old systems IMO, and in more of a catastrophic way. My Son works in MD and there entire digital system was hacked and shut down. Never was an issue with the old system. Wasted so much money going to digital to only end up not even being able to go old school because everything was removed.  

 

I think they would have preferred a random interference. 

I haven't heard of hacking a digital system but like anything else, it's possible. But i think much more difficult for the average person with Digital when you consider hacking ' eavesdropping  

[nokones]

Back in the 90s, and individual spent 3 years in a federal prision and had to pay a $10,000 fine and write an I'm sorry letter for transmitting obscenities on police freqs.

The investigation to his dirty deeds started after a series of him transmitting with obscenities and when he was admonished on the air and he replied "Go "F" yourself. After he was identified as the possible suspect and while he was under surveillance, and he was caught in the act while on a transit bus. Subsequently, he was arrested and was prosecuted in a Federal Court with State charges also pending. Also, a search warrant was obtained to search his residence.

[gortex2]

There is more to this story than you read I am sure. 

This also happens way more than you think but dont go to this level. I apploud this county for pushing this and the FCC doing something. Too many folks think its fine to do what they do just like this site. 

[WRUE951]

1 hour ago, gortex2 said:

There is more to this story than you read I am sure. 

This also happens way more than you think but dont go to this level. I apploud this county for pushing this and the FCC doing something. Too many folks think its fine to do what they do just like this site. 

Freedom of speech has come a long way.. And still has a ways to go

[Lscott]

On 4/22/2025 at 9:55 AM, WRUE951 said:

Cities Counties, etc selling off old radios decommision them and clean of all programing.

Not always. I got a radio from an eBay seller in Canada that was on a trunking system. I used a specially hacked radio programming software to get the info out of the radio without requiring the "system key file" from the trunking site. Some system admin claimed it wasn't possible without the key file. Oops.

[WRUE951]

24 minutes ago, Lscott said:

Not always. I got a radio from an eBay seller in Canada that was on a trunking system. I used a specially hacked radio programming software to get the info out of the radio without requiring the "system key file" from the trunking site. Some system admin claimed it wasn't possible without the key file. Oops.

Canadian Government is not the brightest star on this earth.    I'm sure this has happened from some hilly billy cities in the U.S. but i would think very rare.  In any case, the Comms guys in charge should be fired for letting radios out into the marketplace without wiping them  

[Lscott]

44 minutes ago, WRUE951 said:

Canadian Government is not the brightest star on this earth.    I'm sure this has happened from some hilly billy cities in the U.S. but i would think very rare.  In any case, the Comms guys in charge should be fired for letting radios out into the marketplace without wiping them  

You should see some of my other finds. Figuring out where a used radio comes from is part of the fun collecting them. I usually do a read of the radio before reprogramming them for my use. I got one analog radio that apparently was used by the maintenance department at a nuclear power plant out east.  That took a while to track down based on some memory tag names, a few lucky guesses and matching frequencies in the radio to what I found on the FCC's database for a particular license holder.

Sometimes reading the radio the internal messages make it easy like the below. Usually it takes a lot more effort to figure it out.

 

[WRUE951]

1 hour ago, Lscott said:

You should see some of my other finds. Figuring out where a used radio comes from is part of the fun collecting them. I usually do a read of the radio before reprogramming them for my use. I got one analog radio that apparently was used by the maintenance department at a nuclear power plant out east.  That took a while to track down based on some memory tag names, a few lucky guesses and matching frequencies in the radio to what I found on the FCC's database for a particular license holder.

Sometimes reading the radio the internal messages make it easy like the below. Usually it takes a lot more effort to figure it out.

 

Tony Whitt ain't got's much 'Whitt's'    Name fits him,  and he comes up in a search for Phoenix Shipyard  

[gortex2]

3 hours ago, WRUE951 said:

Canadian Government is not the brightest star on this earth.    I'm sure this has happened from some hilly billy cities in the U.S. but i would think very rare.  In any case, the Comms guys in charge should be fired for letting radios out into the marketplace without wiping them  

This happens in the US all the time. Tons of radios get bought on governemtn sites or other markets that are still full of stuff. Granted your correct it should get wiped but doesn't alwasy happen. But I can say its also not too hard to add a system if you have a radio as this person did above. This was disacussed heavily on other forums and just like here, people helped him do what he did. Its no different than all the folks here telling new users how to use HAM radios on GMRS or other non GMRS radios on GMRS. "no one will get caught" is what I see all the time. Same stuff gets said on putting public safety stuff in legacy part 90 radios. If everyone would simply not help these folks most of this would not happen, or happen way less. But as others say...you can't put the toothpaste back in the tube at this point...

 

[Lscott]

10 minutes ago, gortex2 said:

Same stuff gets said on putting public safety stuff in legacy part 90 radios.

With more departments going digital, usually P25 with a few doing NXDN or even DMR, usually on a trunking system, its getting really hard to do. That's where using an SDR comes in handy. But then again you're not going to be TX'ing with an SDR so it's moot.

Then there is the issue of encryption using the digital modes. Huge rants about that on "radioreference.com" to the point if you bring it up you can get booted.

[Jaay]

11 minutes ago, Lscott said:

With more departments going digital, usually P25 with a few doing NXDN or even DMR, usually on a trunking system, its getting really hard to do. That's where using an SDR comes in handy. But then again you're not going to be TX'ing with an SDR so it's moot.

Then there is the issue of encryption using the digital modes. Huge rants about that on "radioreference.com" to the point if you bring it up you can get booted.

As long it's brought up in the proper forum, then no you won't, but in the end it's up to the Moderators decision.

Many of us use SDS100/200's to listen, as well as SDR's.

[gortex2]

Staffords is P25 Phase II. Its very simple to do what he did. Ton of videos and forum directions on how to do what he did and folks helped him. Just like here.