Royal Radio Codes -- Hams

[Steve Kremer]

Interesting story I found in the May 12, 1996 London Sunday Times. It mentions
Hams helping out police with their communications. The story is Copyright (c)1996
London Sunday Times, it can be found at:

http://www.sunday-times.co.uk/news/pages/Sunday-Times/stinwenws01019.html?1144237
73,
Steve Kremer
KF9ZA
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Hackers hand out royal radio codes

THE lives of members of the royal family and senior politicians are being put at
risk by radio hackers.

A group of radio enthusiasts is distributing lists of sensitive frequencies that
would enable terrorists to track the precise movements of VIPs and eavesdrop on
secret police operations.

Using hand-held scanners which are readily available from high-street electronics
shops, a group of dedicated "listeners" has compiled a 100-page directory of
frequencies, including those used by specialist police units such as the royal and
diplomatic protection squads and others involved in anti-terrorist and firearm
operations.

Special branch frequencies used at Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle have
already been distributed, a Sunday Times investigation has found. Others include
frequencies used by nuclear and biological weapon research establishments, RAF
bomb storage dumps and Eurotunnel's security network.

Even channels used by police protecting Sir Patrick Mayhew, the Northern Ireland
secretary, have been discovered and circulated. In the early hours of yesterday
details of an incident involving a suspected intruder at Mayhew's home in Kent
were overheard.

Senior police officers were holding an urgent meeting with Mayhew yesterday to
explain what had gone wrong. They have also ordered a complete overhaul of
security surrounding both the Northern Ireland secretary and Michael Howard, the
home secretary, who lives in the same county, as a result of The Sunday Times's
findings.

Last week the movements of the Princess Royal around west London were also
monitored from transmissions on special channels used by the royal protection
squad when members of the royal family are travelling. Scanners also detected the
arrival of "Lady Sarah" at Kensington Palace.

The group, which calls itself the Professional Radio Operator Monitoring
Association (Proma), plans to publish its lists of frequencies and put them out on
the Internet.

Police officers and security experts have expressed concern. "What these people
are doing is providing information which could be used by criminals and
terrorists," said Bill Hughes, a West Yorkshire assistant chief constable and
secretary of the technical and research committee of the Association of Chief
Police Officers (Acpo).

Members of the group, however, believe they are highlighting security loopholes
which could and should be filled. Secure radio systems have been available for
years, they say, but have not been utilised by police and other protection units
because of inertia and cost-cutting.

They point to one force which had to use radio hams to handle its communications
during an anti-drug operation because its own system had been infiltrated by
criminals.

In the incident at Mayhew's home, an officer from Kent police used an "open"
uncoded channel to report a suspected intruder, saying that he had heard someone
"crashing through the undergrowth". He was instructed to wait until an armed
response vehicle and dog handlers arrived.

The officers' subsequent attempts to stalk the intruder were discussed on air and
could be overheard by anyone with basic scanning equipment.

Yesterday Inspector Ian Smith of Kent police confirmed details of the incident. He
said nobody was found in the search but he was worried that the police frequency
was known.

"I am very, very concerned that they are circulating this particular frequency. It
is meant to be a very high-security operation," said Smith. He added that police
at the scene did have access to a secure network, but they were not using it.

Frequencies have been published in newsletters ­ seen by The Sunday Times ­ which
are available to more than 60 members for a subscription of £30 a year. They
include ones for GCHQ security, the Williams' Formula One racing team and Ministry
of Defence police.

Hackers tour the country with their scanners, listening to transmissions until
they identify who the messages relate to. They claim to have found the individual
call-signs for the units protecting members of the royal family, including the
Queen, and many senior politicians.

"They make it easy for us," said one leading member of Proma. "They have not
changed the call-signs in years. The call-sign for John Major is the same one they
used for Mrs Thatcher when she was prime minister."

One newsletter gives a complete breakdown of "Metropolitan police communications".

Each bulletin carries the warning: "To use this information with a scanner
contravenes the Wireless and Telegraphy Act 1949." It is legal to own a scanner
but using it to eavesdrop is forbidden on channels used by the military or
emergency services.

However, officials at the Radio Communications Agency, which operates on behalf of
the Department of Trade and Industry, confirmed last week that publishing lists of
frequencies did not on its own breach the act.