[FedCom] CAP & Encryption

[Larry Van Horn, N5FPW]

If you are tired of this thread, then please delete this message and move
on. If you want a bit of insight into these people's mindset and want a
little entertainment this fine Saturday morning in America, then read on.

Good morning Fedcom. Hope all is well with you this fine Saturday monring.
Today is ARRL Field Day and I will be occupied for the next 24 or so hours.
But I had to have a turn at these remarkable comments posted to the
capair portal.

Ken, no one in this thread has attacked the value of what CAP has done in
the past, or even their SAR or education missions they conduct today.  What
we are discussing is a policy and general attitude which extends well past
CAP into other civilian organizations under the government umbrella since
9/11 and the formation of DHS. For many, many years CAP frequencies and
callsigns were public record in the FCC database. Even when they transferred
over under the NTIA umbrella their info was still public domain in any of
the unclassified GMF runs. What's more, less than five years ago all the CAP
comm manuals, bandplans and callsigns were posted on their HQ website.

I knew their former national comm guy at Maxwell personally. We had many
discussions on the phone about him posting that info to the CAP HQ website.
There were many adult leaders in the CAP field organization (lets call them
what they really are - jerks), that were furious when he did this, even
though those frequencies had been in the public domain for years. He even
received a couple of death threats (no I am not kidding here) because of his
open public policies. Shortly after I met this individual at CAP HQ I
published their frequencies. My God you would have thought I had just
revealed the Holy Grail. I got a call from this moron in New York City and
it went something like this.

Caller: Mr. Van Horn.
Me: Yes.
Caller: This is Colonel so-in-so in New York City.
Me: Yes, how can I help you?
Caller: Did you publish the CAP frequencies in this month's magazine?
Me: Why yes I did.
Caller: You are committing a grave act of treason Mr. Van Horn? You are
giving aid and comfort to the enemy.
Me: Really, by publishing CAP frequencies? What enemy to CAP operations are
we referring to?
Caller: You will be assisting those who want to keep us from completing our
missions.
Me: You mean your SAR mission?
Caller: No, I mean all our other missions.
Me: And what might those be?
Caller: That is classified Mr. Van Horn. I will be notifying the CIA.
Me: Really, well I guess I am in deep trouble now. They will probably come
and arrest me huh?
Caller: You bet they will and you will pay for all the harm you have done.
Me: What did you say your name was and where in New York City are you
calling from? I want to get this right when I pass this on to our corporate
lawyers?
Caller: <Click> then dial tone.

I got pretty much the same line of BS when I exposed the current MARS
organizations for what they really are. Bottom line, these civilian aux
organizations such as MARS and CAP have NO business handling any sensitive
traffic in the clear on any frequency. That is what we spend millions for to
let professionals, such as the military, use sophisticated encryption
techniques to hid sensitive info from our enemies. What possible sensitive
traffic could the CAP be passing that could result in their frequencies
being deemed FOUO. And I repeat what I have stated before, if they are in
fact, conducted sensitive missions why? And please don't hand me that lame
excuse so they can get their share of the DHS pie or help the government
flush out bad guys or any of that other nonsense. "Houston we have a problem
here!"

But let's review these comments from the CAPAirPortal one more time together
to get a better idea of what these folks are saying.

"When the conversion to narrowband happens, CAP will be given an entirely
new set of frequencies. Everyone knows the current freq list is signifantly
compromised. The goal is to start folks thinking about OPSEC and FOUO now,
so that when the new freqs are passed down, they will not be compromised
within 10 minutes."

" sure hope not,  It's printed in plain english on far too many unclassified
(not even FOUO) documents and sets of totally unclassified orders (that
everybody seems to get at least 15 copies of) for it to be
classified............."

"I don't get it.  According to the OPSEC .ppt presentation, ARCHER and SDIS
capabilities are considered "critical information".  Then why did the
National HQ send me a PAO toolkit with media fact sheets on both systems?
Right hand vs. left hand?"

"When our Freq's change, and/or we go to narrow band, anyone with a scanner
will know break our COMSEC in 10 seconds. Even if we go to APCO, a bunch of
manufacturers are making APCO (digital) scanners. I suggest using navajo or
pig latin to confuse the enemies of freedom! Of course, encrypting our
system might just work too..."

"Scanners may well find our freqs. The point is that WE need to not make it
easier for them. The argument that they'll find out anyway is not an excuse
to hand out our freqs to anyone who asks."

"Low-level ( Rolling code analog) encryption can be added to virtually any
radio for less than about 40.00 in parts. This is not to bad for NTIA
approved radios ( And none of you evil doers out tere still use non-approved
radios do you?) Since NTIA radios cost hundreds if not thousands of dollars.
"

So what is the point. If you know you will be compromised why are you
allowing sensitive information to continue to be passed on an open exposed
frequencies. Uh, we call that a "bead window" where I come from. And if you
aren't passing sensitive information then there is no need for all the
secrecy.

And to finally set the record straight, Ronald Reagan did NOT classify the
NTIA records in 1984. The NTIA did. I have extensively researched our
archives and all the executive orders signed during that period and based on
that research the NTIA, not the President withdrew those files from the
public. They classified the bulk of them when compiled into one source as
Confidential. Individual frequencies are not classified, but bulk disclosure
is. In fact, several agencies have since released some if not all of their
freqs thanks to Privacy Act request over the past few years.

Rest assured I am determined to get down to the bottom of this in the near
future. But for the time being any CAP folks reading this, I am determined
to find and post every CAP frequency I find. You have become my personal
monitoring mission. Every slip you make, every COMSEC violation I uncover
will become part of the public record. You folks can run, but you can't hide
VHF transmitters at 10,000 feet. And I know these new frequencies are locked
in and you won't be changing tehm again any time soon. And since you buy
your comm gear off the shelf, I doubt Icom or any other supplier will be
selling you a KY-57 for your rig.

Bottom line, the last time I read my constitution the government works for
me. And by extension, CAP and MARS work for me since they are at the
government money pit. I gave the government that money and I want to know
how it is spent. Right now, I am not a happy camper. So I leave you with
these two thoughts, this fine Saturday morning in America...

"The best weapon of a dictatorship is secrecy; the best weapon of a
democracy is openness." Edvard Teller

"Representative David Skaggs, Democrat of Colorado, was quizzing the head of
administrative services at the CIA about classified material a while ago
(May 14, 1997).  How much, he asked, did the agency spend each year on
classification. Well, the official said, that information is classified ...
What we do know, courtesy of the Information Security Oversight Office of
the National Archives is that the government - except the CIA - spent $5.23
billion on classification last year."

Sobering thought huh!

73 all de Larry
Aka a proud member of the "Enemies of Freedom," the new generation of the
Sons of Liberty.