Federal Public Safety Radios Have Security Flaws

Encrypted transmissions were often sent in the clear and university researchers were able to intercept sensitive traffic sent by law-enforcement officials, study finds.

(click image for larger view)
Slideshow: Inside DHS Classified Cyber-Coordination Headquarters
Portable radios federal law enforcement officials use to communicate with one another have security flaws that allowed researchers to intercept sensitive traffic on them, including information that could identify confidential informants and undercover agents, according to a new study.
Government public-safety personnel use VHF and UHF short-range handheld radios to speak to one another that are based on a series of protocols that include the security of the devices, according to a study by University of Pennsylvania researchers.
However, that protocol--called APCO Project 25, or P25--has a number of limitations and weaknesses that allow what is meant to be encrypted traffic to be intercepted by third parties, researchers found.
The Wall Street Journal

first published
the results of the study and also posted a
link to it
online.
University researchers Sandy Clark, Travis Goodspeed, Perry Metzger, Zachary Wasserman and Kevin Xu authored the study, called Why (Special Agent) Johnny (Still) Cant Encrypt: A Security Analysis of the APCO Project 25 Two-Way Radio System. They said they have contacted the federal government about their findings.
The researchers said they analyzed over-the-air P25 traffic being sent on the two-way radio systems and found that a significant fraction of sensitive data that was meant to be encrypted was actually sent in the clear, a fact that was undetected by other users.
To conduct the study, researchers built a P25 traffic interception system for federal frequency bands and operated it in two U.S. metropolitan areas over a two-year period. During that period, researchers noticed three scenarios in which sensitive traffic that was meant to be encrypted was sent in the clear: through individual error, group error or a keying failure.
In the first instance, at least one user would be transmitting in the clear but others were encrypted. However, the user or users in the clear would still receive encrypted traffic without it being detected, according to the study.
In the second instance, all of the users communicating on the devices were in the clear but believed they were operating in encrypted mode. In the third instance, one of the users didnt have the correct encryption key for a transmission and asked other users to switch to clear mode to communicate effectively.
In addition to information that could compromise undercover agents and confidential informants, researchers intercepted sensitive traffic during the study that included: names and locations of criminal investigative targets, including those involved in organized crime; locations and description of surveillance operatives and their vehicles; and plans for forthcoming arrest, raids and other confidential operations, according to the study.
The vendors, contractors, and other outside parties with which you do business can create a serious security risk. Heres how to keep this threat in check. Also in the new, all-digital issue of Dark Reading: Why focusing solely on your own companys security ignores the bigger picture.
Download it now
. (Free registration required.)

Last News
▸ Some DLP Products Vulnerable to Security Holes ◂ Discovered: 23/12/2024 Category: security	▸ Scan suggests Heartbleed patches may not have been successful. ◂ Discovered: 23/12/2024 Category: security	▸ IoT Devices on Average Have 25 Vulnerabilities ◂ Discovered: 23/12/2024 Category: security

**Cyber Security Categories**
Google Dorks Database	Exploits Vulnerability	Exploit Shellcodes

CVE List

Tools/Apps

News/Aarticles

Phishing Database

Deepfake Detection

Trends/Statistics & Live Infos

Tags:
Federal Public Safety Radios Have Security Flaws