Much more simple than I thought it was going to be. Getting information out there is legal and covered under our rights. ( what little rights we have left )
AndFLmsg is a great way to communicate with cheap handhelds. If you're in an active warzone it might not be the best. One thing everyone should be aware of is that even small messages take a while to send. This gives your adversary the opportunity to find you. Use it if you have to then move. Use directional antennas. Only use the minimum power necessary.
Excellent points. Acoustic coupling works in a pinch, but an audio interface cable would be ideal in a hostile environment. It's always good to have options.
I really appreciate these short and direct videos. As a ham, as long as one doesn't mess with or jam the repeaters, then I don't really care what anyone does.
Holy Cow, you answered my questions and made it so simple. Our group has been looking for an effective and portable system to do just this. Great Job!!
Good coverage without getting down into rabbit holes. A fun little test to show how resilient MT-63 is, I copied the digital transmission on a computer (not the one I was watching the video with) running FLDIGI, despite the low audio.
Thank you. This one is for the people. At some point, I'll go deeper into the FCC rules (Part 90, 95 and 97). I'm a fan of K.I.S.S. I hope this helps a certain group of people across the pond. I was going to suggest that people launch the app while my fldigi traffic audio is playing in the video, but I forgot.
Just ran across this today. I get that you were trying to do it technology based, there is another way that we used in the military (at least when I was in 30 years ago) to send an encrypted message in the clear without encryption that was technology based. The Comms NCO's would create a message grid on a sheet of grid paper, leaving an open set of blocks along the top of the page and down the left side of the page. They would then put each letter into one of the boxes and that was blank and and a number starting from any random place in the other open boxes. It is basically a replacement cypher that only a person with the corresponding sheet of paper can decode. We did that at the platoon level, so every squad and team leader had a copy and we could decode a message from the Platoon leader and/or Platoon Sgt. Drove the range officers crazy in the Box, because even though they had our fills for our encrypted radios, we were conducting operations in the clear (no encryption) and they could never figure out what we were saying to each other. I am sure they ended up out lawing that at some point, but it was super effective. All you would hear in the clear was something like "Stinger 1; Alpha 27. Out." It meant nothing to any computer or person without one of our code cards. Very low tech, and you would have to create several different sets to guard against a set being compromised, but it worked and was highly effective. used date/time codes for the cards to know which one to use, and would reset the cards every morning at 0400. If a set was compromised all we would hear on the net was "Crazy Weasel" followed by the new date/time card to use so "92-0400" We would all swap out to the card titled date time 92-0400. Several different ways to achieve this, but they all work in a similar manner... Let the butthurt flow from the HAM Cops. lol 😂 😂
@@Oscar_delta13 Yeah I can see the similarities. It was really just born of the LT asking me to create a 'one time pad' we could use for comms in the box; while we were there for a month or two at a time as the entire brigades' combat arms teams would rotate through. That is probably one reason I was able to come up with this in short order.
Well not complaining here, as a ham. So don't lump all hams into the same boat. I'm all for doing what's legal during times where the shit hasn't hit the fan. But for example if it ever did I guess you could use these techniques above. I don't have any use for them but very interesting.
Having some experience with the acoustic coupler technology in the early days of computers, the main concern I would have (aside from the whole legal thing) would be that when using acoustic tones over the air rather than transmitting through a cable is that the chances of the tones not being accurately copied goes up significantly. This might be a little less of a problem if transmitting in clear text - if one or two words get slightly garbled, the gist of the message is likely to still be understandable, but if you take a corrupted transmission in cyphertext and feed it through the decrypter, the plain text you get might be complete nonsense. This is why modems always had parity bits and other means to ensure that the data received matched the data transmitted and had error detecting and a re-transmit protocol defined to catch and correct errors. I don't see any of that infrastructure here. I would be interesting in seeing the results of this process tested a number of times to see whether this is something that one could really rely upon, but of course, can't test this under normal circumstances in the US at least and trying to validate it when the SHTF is probably not ideal either.
We have elected to use the MT63-2KL modem which is very resilient to high noise and environments. Personally, our group does not use this technique (acoustic coupling) very often. We all wire our audio connections using the DigiRig Mobile, SignaLink USB, etc.. Secondly, we all have switched to using flmsg as it gives us a data checksum. We are just using fldigi as the transport. In terms of modes, our primary is 8PSK-1000F due to speed and if needed we fallback to the more robust MT63-2KL. We rarely need to fallback as 8PSK-1000F works 99% of the time. We are conducting weekly training exercise in the field and at home over simplex, through repeaters and even through linked repeaters with great success. All those experiments are in the clear. Here is one of early field tests: ua-cam.com/video/9UqsQz8049c/v-deo.html Here is a more recent test: ua-cam.com/video/bRMQuY2hVzo/v-deo.html
You can legally test it using MURS bands. It’s in the 2M frequency and would perform very similarly to amateur bands. Only catch would be you would have to use a MURS fcc part licensed radio to legally transmit in that band.
For military applications they might need to send large amounts of data. One way that you might do this is to use 7zip to compress then encrypt the file then send it over the air with flarq. Because these units maybe geographically separated with no way to reliably reach each other they should have access to some over the air re-keying scheme. I'd recommend ECIES (Elliptic Curve Integrated Encryption Scheme). Elliptic curve cryptography is more suited for slow AFSK digital modes because the keys are much shorter than RSA keys for the same level of protection. Also for whatever symmetric block cipher you choose, e.g., AES-256, make sure you don't use a feedback mode like "electronic codebook (ECB)" especially if you're sending image data. Also, using windows in a tactical environment is not a good idea, you probably want to run OpenBSD or Fedora, but there you will have to use different tools for encryption and compression. Make sure to first compress then encrypt.
Great tips. Thanks for sharing. My EmComm Tools software project runs on top of Linux and supports various encryption capabilities that use the a number ham radio modems as the transport. At the moment, only my local group has this software. I have not decided yet when or how to make it public.
@@TheTechPrepper one thing I forgot to mention you also need to consider is doing this in something with managed memory when reading data over the radio, the reason being that some hostile radio could attempt something like in the EW world called a "Suter" in this case some buffer overflow attack that would allow the remote hostile transmission to execute commands on your machine. OpenBSD is more protected against such attacks.
@daviddickey9832 anyway you can point me in the right direction for some more info on what you would recommend running? Seems you are well versed on the topic. Some help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
@@E731-j1u I tried posting a response earlier and it looks like it didnt succeed. It depends on how paranoid you want to be, but probably the easiest thing to throw together is 2 hackRF's so you can run full duplex and then use filters and power amplifiers for whatever (bands) frequency ranges you intend on using. I'd interface with them using GNURadio and python. Python also has strong NLP support so you can catalogue natural speech that you hear and then maybe do some analysis on it later. Also in a tactical environment those HackRF's can be useful if your adversary (e.g., Ukraine war) is using cell phones.
"large amounts of data" should be reduced with brevity codes as much as possible. Think like texting back when you had both a character limit AND a limit on number of texts per month.
MURS is great for testing out digital modes if you don't have a ham license since sending data is allowed. I've had success sending data with the faster modes from 1-1.5 miles away with a baofeng and decent antenna.
@@TheTechPrepper I always call these types of things hypotheticals. As long as you're only talking about what *could* be done, it's all good. I have a lot of hypothetical conversations with people 🤣
I reviewed this again after almost a year. Your vids are great references... They have helped me sort out the newer technology to help enter the HAM world of today vs 20 years ago...which for me was a mix of tube/hybrid and transistorized Yaesu's/Kenwoods. Carry on Shalom
@@TheTechPrepper Yes, it is. I currently have been setting up LoRa's for us here, but have what I need for both so reviewed this again and ...well, two is one and one is none as the adage goes. Right now I'm just really behind on my prepping projects and trying to catch up. Have multiple projects on both the firearms bench and the electronics bench so a bit overwhelmed [down side to multiple interests/talents]. Oh well, I'm more closely prepared than most...
@@richardkennedy815 Glad to hear that you're making progress in your preps. Spoiler, I have a different view on Meshtastic. This is coming later this year.
Good stuff man! I liked your novel way of demonstration by using acoustic coupling - cool stuff 🙂 Packet radio is where things get interesting. It's staggering how similar packet radio frames are to TCP/IP. I mean, it makes perfect sense - they both came from the same DARPA research. Packet radio was the original internet, and wireless to boot. Just add wires (or optical fiber, or radio channels that allow encryption) and bump up the speed and you have today's modern internet. Everything you can do over the internet today was originally done over RF before the internet existed. Is amateur radio HAMstrung? Heh - sorry, couldn't resist. Keep up the good work man!
Thanks. People have become too reliant on the Internet and have forgotten how powerful packet networks were in the 80's and 90's. I'm a huge fan of bringing back old tech and applying a modern twist that has value for off grid use cases.
This is not a coincidence.. This is because TCP/IP (1974) was based on a wireless MAC (medium access control) protocol used in the Hawaiian islands for inter-island wireless data comms called the ALOHA protocol developed in the late in 1960s - 1973[2]. We studied this in my telecomm engineering classes in the 90s.. I'm surprised it's not called out specifically in the wikipedia articles below. I may need to dig up my references in this and include this important piece of Internet history. [1] - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_network#History [2] - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ALOHAnet#ALOHA_protocol
So another option for people that watch you don't get an amateur license. Get a land mobile license. And you can have any kind of level encryption that you want just like I have.
I've watched a bunch of videos and all of yours are very informative and valuable. Thank you so much for sharing this educational piece. Continued success
Fantastic video… there is nothing wrong with academic exercises… it’s how we grow. I want to know as much info as I can fit into my head. Never know what the future may hold. 3 years ago if someone predicted the state of the world today, EVERYONE would have thought they were crazy.
@@TheTechPrepper - Geopolitics UA-cam channels like Caspian Report headed by an ex-government employee predicted Russian involvement a long time ago, many thought that war will start previous winter Olympics in 2018 as Putin tends to engage in such activities when there is some kind of public distraction going on but Trump was likely too wild card even for Putin while they got pretty good relationship anyway but Biden's handling of retreat from Afghanistan, bad relationship with Putin together with the West weakened by the pandemic could give Putin wrong impressions. - Bill Gates made a talk on TED about the dangers of the pandemic over a decade ago, as virus outbreaks reoccurring on regular basis due to poor food industry practices (Swine Flu in the US, Mad Cows in the UK) Covid19 like event was likely inevitable in the long run. - Economics in terms of national debt going down ever since Bush Junior took the office and neither the smarts of Obama nor the economic experience of Trump was able to change that. Every time someone proposes higher taxes on the majority of the population is ridiculed while higher taxes on corporations will likely be avoided through various loopholes already in the system or added through lobbying. There were legitimate worries that higher taxes on population will reduce purchasing power sufficiently to introduce recession while if a large portion of corporations will be unable to avoid paying higher taxes to pass this burden on consumers thus both recession and inflation occur. The US leadership will need all help it can get to get it through unharmed, and looking at the handling of Covid-19, I have my doubts about the government's ability to radically change this downhill trend, perhaps they can press brakes and slow it little at least. Being aware of what's going on in the world will give you a head start to take countermeasures long before panicking crowds take over the streets. Take some time each day to look around at what is happening, it will save you a lot of financial troubles in the long run. Only people who aren't really looking still think that everything will be fine, and because of these people that did not take any preventive measures living from paycheck to paycheck without any backups, politicians will be lying through their teeth in order to prevent the blind unaware majority from panicking every time when there will be such possibility.
I’m sure someone may have mentioned it already but I think it’s important to know…just realize that encryption alone is not going to make you “secure” in a war. Your message may be secure, but every time to transmit, your location could be compromised. It’s very easy to radio direction find even for a moderately equipped amateur. Stay safe
@@Wolfspaine7N6there are many ways you can do this. The simplest and maybe crudest technique is to use a directional antenna and move around while watching the signal strength. As you move you can slowly close in on the transmitter, getting closer and closer. This is usually referred to as “fox hunting”. There are more sophisticated methods using multiple antennas that compare the phase shift of the signal to determine direction. With multiple receivers of this nature you can determine the approximate location of a transmitter without having much transmitter-on time needed. You can simply record the signals and analyze them later. There are of course even more sophisticated systems that use phased-array antennas on satellites in orbit….all you have to do is google this stuff if you want to learn more.
Try the Baofeng APRS cable. All it is doing is connecting the phones audio both ways to the radio and using VOX. What you put through it from the phone to the radio at that point is on you! :)
Great call out. I showed the APRS-K1 cable earlier in the series. The goal was for anyone to traffic data with just a radio and an Android device. I was trying to demonstrate that this approach works with no additional hardware and every radio.
@@W4TRI_Ronny Welcome to the channel. Those APRS-K1 cables are nice. My only complaint is that you have to use the VOX on the Baofeng. The TX tail is too long on those radios for some digital work--namely, packet.
I have, but if I recall they don't adjust small enough. I was hoping for 100ms as the tail cutoff. My Ailunce HD1 will go as low as 500ms, but that's still a bit high for some packet modes.
I'm brand new to this (and a lot of other technology). Does the phone/app need or use any cell service or any connection to the internet. My three reasons for asking: 1) If a person is in a remote location with no cell service but can hit a (ham) repeater or function with simplex; 2) Anything that goes through cell/online is grabbed and or filtered; 3) In difficult times there may be no cell/internet service. I'm assuming the app is independent. It's the password situation that needs to be well planned, eh? Very helpful vid, and legal in many uses.
I prefer using one time pad for encryption, the encryption key changes every 5 numbers/characters. Absolutely support use of directional antenna. If you have to transmit encoded messages never send within 1000 meters of your home/base.Transmit and move.
From Scotland and have a wee h3 tidradio & I've just whim bought it,so now in the UK the CB community radio bands aren't as popular as the states...so looking to see if I can download or program osiloscope or wave analyser functionality onto it aswell as is it possible I can send programs to another handset...send & receive data on them ? I'm a total noob , so just fumbling about the button & air waves & havnt made a connection yet ?
Hello Gaston. One of the options to go further will be to set the squelch to 0 in case the transmission does not have enough power to open this "filter". Based on this, and because obviously this way we are going to have a lot of noise, what will be the mode to choose for you in the modem, which is more "resistant" to this noise? Thanks in advance for the reply. Hug. 🙏
Well done. Technology has come to some amazing breakthroughs. Your KISS method is easy to learn and understand. I'm reminded recently when Elon Musk described how easy it is to make a drone with off the shelf Technology that could hunt a specific person. Education is the key to all of this. Knowing how and pushing the limits is how we grow.
Glad to hear it came across simple and clear. Some folks are already missing the point and bitching about the Baofeng. It's not my personal gear of choice, but it's the most prolific.
Great video. Just curious Im a ham up here in British Columbia and do lots of horseback riding. How do you like your ULEFone? My Samsung has taken a few rides to the ground while riding and its not in good shape. So many ULEFONE models too.....
Yes, you are right. This is the poor man's technique. The other videos in the series talk about connecting various radios to a computer or phone using cables. No issues with noise.
Been experimenting with this a bit since I saw this video a couple years ago. Works fantastic, but i use rattlegram instead. Nice short bursts. Kinda limited by rattlegram for actual text length but if thats a problem you can send one message in chunks. If i was in a warzone i would want to reduce my rf signature, and fldigi takes too long. Fortunately, I have a business licence so i can fool with encryption over the air 😃
The Anytone 878 and 578 are capable of encrypted DMR. It's more costly than a baofeng, but theres a cost involved with cobbling together encryption for a feng too.
Great call out. I have had both of the radios since the end of 2022 and have been meaning to talk about the use of AES-256 bit encryption with these rigs.
Do you have any knowledge on AES 256-bit key generators or how to "program" a group's phones with a key once it has been generated? It's certainly possible to manually type it in but time consuming and leaves room for error. Thanks in advance and keep up the great work!
Uv-13 pro with GPS has an encryption setting. No clue how it works but I just enabled it and could hear nothing through a channel with a tone set up. Checked and it's Frequency Hopping.
Hey. So, taking legality aside (or let's imagine we're outside of the US legal realm), there's a way to replace OSI's layer 2 with AX.25 and then use TLS authentication over layer 7. There's a paper on the internet, where the authors were able to do it. In addition, they were also able to throw GPG into the mix. GPG is pretty cool, since you can' encrypt/decrypt with a per-shared key, just like in your example. I think security aspect is important in HAM. How are you going to protect yourself against call sign spoofing? Can the data be change in transit? Is there a way to appy CIA triad to the comm over AX.25?
Just another thought here...instead of encrypting, one can encode the text, like text to base64 or HEX. This isn't encryption and could be decoded by anyone, but good luck guessing the encoder (security through obscurity).
I would classify the approach I discussed as the poorman's method. It would work well unless a nation-state is set on deciphering your traffic. Switching the OSI network stack is interesting, but throughput and bandwidth will be the limiting factor over RF. I'll have to read the paper when I have time. Thanks for sharing. Since we're talking about a theoretical scenario where there is no rule of law, callsigns will not matter. But, if you are referring to using the call sign as the method for identifying the other party, that could be an issue. If the password key is secure and not known to others it would likely be safe to assume that you are likely communicating with the intended party. The goal for this video was not to have the perfect secure comms solution, but to have something that is simple, effective and more secure than plain voice or digital to mitigate eavesdropping.
Why dont they just make a simple device you attach to the speaker that encrypts your voice and same on the other end where each needs a code to hear it?
Great series keep up the good work. Can you cover a small business license to be legal for encrypted radios? I work at an airport and would like encryption. Explain the process please and budget radio options for this to include a repeater.
Damn good video and best bang for the buck. Encrypted DMR is available via firmware hacks, but that costs a lot more money. I'm sure the zedheads heads are exploding over this video now, lol.
Thanks. This is the most basic setup I could think of. Technically this works with the BTech APRS-K1 cable for the Baofeng if you enable VOX on the Baofeng. But, I did not want to introduce another component. Hopefully, this will get the wheels turning for folks.
TYT MD-380 & TYT MD-390 have 128 bit/32 digit hexadecimal key encryption, easy to program, analogue/digital all in a handheld rugged built radio & costs under $200 USD.
@TheTechPrepper You appear to be running some version of Ubuntu. Can you suggest a version of LINUX that's best suited to Ham radio 📻 applications? 73!
Encryption is not permitted for amateur radio (Part 97) as you're not allowed to obscure the meaning of a transmission on the amateur radio bands. It's federal law that is governed by the FCC. Encryption is allowed for commercial use with a business license (Part 90). There's also Part 95 which covers MURS, FRS, GMRS, and CB. I tried to unpack whether or not encryption was allowed under MURS, but it turned out to be rats nest when I started to look at each allowed emission type. This is part of the reason why I'm going to explore a business license and find an inexpensive business radio (EF Johnson or Hytera). I'm no expert here, so I'm happy for others to jump in.
@@TheTechPrepper It does bother me somewhat that if voice/data networks are disrupted then we have no means of secure comms with family/resources. Perhaps I haven't seen your content on this topic yet, but I would love to learn your emergency (without licence) protocols, including any viable tactics for detection prevention (outside of mobility). I would never cross fed law yet I highly value knowledge and contingencies. I'm feeling very inspired! thank you!!
@@TheTechPrepper I so appreciate your hard work that you're putting into this channel. You restated the FCC rule about amateur radio, but there's still no explanation of "why" our messages are required to be plaintext aside from public codecs like Morse or JS8Call.
@@PatrickKQ4HBD I am no expert in the exact legal matters, so I avoid the conversation. Other channels cover the legal issues. My goal is just to point out that it is not legal and it's up to the viewer to make their own determination on how they want to use the technique and research the laws on their own.
Allegedly, this is to prevent companies from abusing ham radio and using it to do business because with encryption its impossible to prove in court what the content of the message was if all you have is ciphertexts.
Would there be a way to only have US military assets hear you in a SHTF situation? Like an enemy force was around and you were maybe not in America? I don't know anything about radios at this time. But was curious if your boned if you need to talk with allies without baddies finding/hearing you. Thanks so much for the vid it was super cool.
If you separate out text encryption isn’t much of an obstacle. Other people’s encryption is of course an option but it’s actually not all that difficult to write your own. Sending text is the really valuable step.
@@TheTechPrepper thanks! These days no one talks about “unbreakable” codes. Instead they talk about “leakage rates” or how long it takes to break a code. 🤔 Well, if a code only has to resist being broken for 30 min or so, code word cyphers aren’t completely out of the game. (Well, maybe, there are newspapers that publish them like crossword puzzles so people can break them for fun. 🤷 If your opposition has a champion player ….. but then if they don’t have a bunch of people who know your language well it might take time to dig up the resources.)
Someone come up with a way for a hard wired cell to encrypt voice comms, and on the receiving end with the proper key also decrypt comms. Bonus points if you can including mapping data as well. Make the android phone be the brains of the communication.
Very interested in putting together a "in the field" data/digital link on Baofeng UV-82's and UV-9R Pro's [not unlike the mil KDU concept] for team comms. By then crossbanding such communications into vehicle radio [already have this part] I have more than adequate comms for my area. The data or digital part of the puzzle is where I am still stumped. Can you direct me on this?
Yes I'm a ham And yes we're trying to figure out how to do secure voice when there is no law, shtf,stuff Never realized it was so easy as this thank you very very much excellent idea
Hi. If you will use attenuation and limit the power to the limit where the licence or permissions are not required and within the regulation - then it might be possible legally practice encrypted coms - subject to carefully checked regulations. The MT63 is not designed to be operated on FM - is designed to be operated on SSB. There are specially designed or most suitable modes for FM like 8PSK and VARA-FM. There are articles on the subject - info on that can be found in Fldigi manual dedicated to digital modes - 8PSK works well with VOX and acoustic coupling and AndFlmsg. It is recommended to not use government recommended encryption - like National Institute For Science and Technology publish recommendations for encryption. It is advised to not use encryption recommended by government - it is recommended to use one of Bruce Schneier algorithms. RSA encryption is most known for easiness to be decoded by special units - for them it is transparent. There are HT with encryption or frequency hopping - most of Chinese DPMR radios for $50 have encryption as standard - like RECENT RS309D. Alinco has HT with AES-256 encryption - DJ-MD5T Having encrypted comms or even possibility of encrypted comms gives lots of fan. All the best - 73
Yes. No cell or WiFi required. In general, all the applications that I discuss on the channel are 100% offline. I am not a fan of the Internet, cell network or any grid tie. Good question!
@@philxskillz The distance is subject to radio line of site. Your distance can improve based on location, antenna system, environment and power. I did a field exercise where we tested the acoustic coupling. Here's a direct link. I was about 1.5 miles out, but only running 0.5 watts. ua-cam.com/video/HtM0drzD2kw/v-deo.html
I know this question isn’t exactly related but I’m in the market for a laptop. What make/model would you Recomend as a general purpose that also is good for radio comm?
Question, do you know of any way to do the same or similar operation just on a PC (Is there a Message Encryptor for PC). And by the way this is awesome.
If you are already familiar with the XTS-2500, have the CPS, have all the hardware, have the correct firmware, have the correct entitlements, and know how to load the crypto, go with the Motorola option. If you're new to Motorola and don't have the time for learn all the details of the Motorola XTS line , you're better of going with an AnyTone 878.
@@CowboyPilot79 It's a simple modification to the Rattlegram to support encryption. I am sure that the developers do not want have any liability on their hands. I also have built encryption into my custom applications, but do not distribute the modifications for the liability issue.
@@TheTechPrepper that was next on my list haha. I figure I'll just add a pop-up that says only for use on approved means or something. The only times I've actually seen developers gone after is when the only actual use for something would be an illegal use. 99% of BitTorrent users use it to Pirate copyrighted material but there's a 1% base of use for legitimate stuff. I've seen a lot of user convictions for piracy but none against BitTorrent itself.
Much more simple than I thought it was going to be. Getting information out there is legal and covered under our rights. ( what little rights we have left )
That's was the point. Inexpensive, simple and practical. Thanks for the support. Cheers!
Amen, brother.
"Preppers" are a bunch of lunatics.
This would theoretically work in other applications where a payload of txt can be sent as long as the format characters is supported by the mode.
AndFLmsg is a great way to communicate with cheap handhelds. If you're in an active warzone it might not be the best. One thing everyone should be aware of is that even small messages take a while to send. This gives your adversary the opportunity to find you.
Use it if you have to then move. Use directional antennas. Only use the minimum power necessary.
Excellent points. Acoustic coupling works in a pinch, but an audio interface cable would be ideal in a hostile environment. It's always good to have options.
I really appreciate these short and direct videos. As a ham, as long as one doesn't mess with or jam the repeaters, then I don't really care what anyone does.
Holy Cow, you answered my questions and made it so simple. Our group has been looking for an effective and portable system to do just this. Great Job!!
Glad to hear you found your answer. This is about as low tech as you can get on the cheap for encrypted comms.
Good coverage without getting down into rabbit holes.
A fun little test to show how resilient MT-63 is, I copied the digital transmission on a computer (not the one I was watching the video with) running FLDIGI, despite the low audio.
Thank you. This one is for the people. At some point, I'll go deeper into the FCC rules (Part 90, 95 and 97). I'm a fan of K.I.S.S. I hope this helps a certain group of people across the pond.
I was going to suggest that people launch the app while my fldigi traffic audio is playing in the video, but I forgot.
Just ran across this today. I get that you were trying to do it technology based, there is another way that we used in the military (at least when I was in 30 years ago) to send an encrypted message in the clear without encryption that was technology based. The Comms NCO's would create a message grid on a sheet of grid paper, leaving an open set of blocks along the top of the page and down the left side of the page. They would then put each letter into one of the boxes and that was blank and and a number starting from any random place in the other open boxes. It is basically a replacement cypher that only a person with the corresponding sheet of paper can decode. We did that at the platoon level, so every squad and team leader had a copy and we could decode a message from the Platoon leader and/or Platoon Sgt. Drove the range officers crazy in the Box, because even though they had our fills for our encrypted radios, we were conducting operations in the clear (no encryption) and they could never figure out what we were saying to each other. I am sure they ended up out lawing that at some point, but it was super effective. All you would hear in the clear was something like "Stinger 1; Alpha 27. Out." It meant nothing to any computer or person without one of our code cards. Very low tech, and you would have to create several different sets to guard against a set being compromised, but it worked and was highly effective. used date/time codes for the cards to know which one to use, and would reset the cards every morning at 0400. If a set was compromised all we would hear on the net was "Crazy Weasel" followed by the new date/time card to use so "92-0400" We would all swap out to the card titled date time 92-0400. Several different ways to achieve this, but they all work in a similar manner... Let the butthurt flow from the HAM Cops. lol 😂 😂
See now this is what the beer-swilling camo-wearing 2A crowd thinks they're resisting.
Very interesting.
The process you described is a One Time Pad.
The grid and blocks make me think of LC4 Cipher.
@@Oscar_delta13 Yeah I can see the similarities. It was really just born of the LT asking me to create a 'one time pad' we could use for comms in the box; while we were there for a month or two at a time as the entire brigades' combat arms teams would rotate through. That is probably one reason I was able to come up with this in short order.
Well not complaining here, as a ham. So don't lump all hams into the same boat. I'm all for doing what's legal during times where the shit hasn't hit the fan. But for example if it ever did I guess you could use these techniques above. I don't have any use for them but very interesting.
Having some experience with the acoustic coupler technology in the early days of computers, the main concern I would have (aside from the whole legal thing) would be that when using acoustic tones over the air rather than transmitting through a cable is that the chances of the tones not being accurately copied goes up significantly. This might be a little less of a problem if transmitting in clear text - if one or two words get slightly garbled, the gist of the message is likely to still be understandable, but if you take a corrupted transmission in cyphertext and feed it through the decrypter, the plain text you get might be complete nonsense. This is why modems always had parity bits and other means to ensure that the data received matched the data transmitted and had error detecting and a re-transmit protocol defined to catch and correct errors. I don't see any of that infrastructure here. I would be interesting in seeing the results of this process tested a number of times to see whether this is something that one could really rely upon, but of course, can't test this under normal circumstances in the US at least and trying to validate it when the SHTF is probably not ideal either.
We have elected to use the MT63-2KL modem which is very resilient to high noise and environments. Personally, our group does not use this technique (acoustic coupling) very often. We all wire our audio connections using the DigiRig Mobile, SignaLink USB, etc.. Secondly, we all have switched to using flmsg as it gives us a data checksum. We are just using fldigi as the transport. In terms of modes, our primary is 8PSK-1000F due to speed and if needed we fallback to the more robust MT63-2KL. We rarely need to fallback as 8PSK-1000F works 99% of the time.
We are conducting weekly training exercise in the field and at home over simplex, through repeaters and even through linked repeaters with great success. All those experiments are in the clear.
Here is one of early field tests: ua-cam.com/video/9UqsQz8049c/v-deo.html
Here is a more recent test: ua-cam.com/video/bRMQuY2hVzo/v-deo.html
@@TheTechPrepper❤
You can legally test it using MURS bands. It’s in the 2M frequency and would perform very similarly to amateur bands. Only catch would be you would have to use a MURS fcc part licensed radio to legally transmit in that band.
s/might be completely nonsense/is guaranteed to be completely nonsense
For military applications they might need to send large amounts of data. One way that you might do this is to use 7zip to compress then encrypt the file then send it over the air with flarq. Because these units maybe geographically separated with no way to reliably reach each other they should have access to some over the air re-keying scheme. I'd recommend ECIES (Elliptic Curve Integrated Encryption Scheme). Elliptic curve cryptography is more suited for slow AFSK digital modes because the keys are much shorter than RSA keys for the same level of protection. Also for whatever symmetric block cipher you choose, e.g., AES-256, make sure you don't use a feedback mode like "electronic codebook (ECB)" especially if you're sending image data. Also, using windows in a tactical environment is not a good idea, you probably want to run OpenBSD or Fedora, but there you will have to use different tools for encryption and compression. Make sure to first compress then encrypt.
Great tips. Thanks for sharing. My EmComm Tools software project runs on top of Linux and supports various encryption capabilities that use the a number ham radio modems as the transport. At the moment, only my local group has this software. I have not decided yet when or how to make it public.
@@TheTechPrepper one thing I forgot to mention you also need to consider is doing this in something with managed memory when reading data over the radio, the reason being that some hostile radio could attempt something like in the EW world called a "Suter" in this case some buffer overflow attack that would allow the remote hostile transmission to execute commands on your machine. OpenBSD is more protected against such attacks.
@daviddickey9832 anyway you can point me in the right direction for some more info on what you would recommend running? Seems you are well versed on the topic. Some help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
@@E731-j1u I tried posting a response earlier and it looks like it didnt succeed. It depends on how paranoid you want to be, but probably the easiest thing to throw together is 2 hackRF's so you can run full duplex and then use filters and power amplifiers for whatever (bands) frequency ranges you intend on using. I'd interface with them using GNURadio and python. Python also has strong NLP support so you can catalogue natural speech that you hear and then maybe do some analysis on it later. Also in a tactical environment those HackRF's can be useful if your adversary (e.g., Ukraine war) is using cell phones.
"large amounts of data" should be reduced with brevity codes as much as possible. Think like texting back when you had both a character limit AND a limit on number of texts per month.
Great video man.... Nice to see it all put together....
Always be prepared Bro! Big Brother can decrypt most anything but your creative problem solving has provided a starting point for sure.
Yep, that's how I roll. The solution came to me while decompressing on a trail run. Take care.
If they spend the computing resources to throw at it. RSA-4096 or the type of encryption used for ssh keys would be nice.
If everyone is encrypted, listeners have to spend time decrypting every single message.
MURS is great for testing out digital modes if you don't have a ham license since sending data is allowed. I've had success sending data with the faster modes from 1-1.5 miles away with a baofeng and decent antenna.
Really impressed with your content - subscribed and looking forward to more 👍
Welcome to the channel. More content coming your way. Cheers!
You walked the line perfectly. Great info Gaston!
Thanks, Rob. I wasn't sure how this topic would be received.
@@TheTechPrepper I always call these types of things hypotheticals.
As long as you're only talking about what *could* be done, it's all good. I have a lot of hypothetical conversations with people 🤣
Always good to have a hypothetical conversations people. We're both people, so wink, wink.
I reviewed this again after almost a year. Your vids are great references... They have helped me sort out the newer technology to help enter the HAM world of today vs 20 years ago...which for me was a mix of tube/hybrid and transistorized Yaesu's/Kenwoods. Carry on Shalom
Glad to see you come back. This is still a great low tech solution. I appreciate the support.
@@TheTechPrepper Yes, it is. I currently have been setting up LoRa's for us here, but have what I need for both so reviewed this again and ...well, two is one and one is none as the adage goes. Right now I'm just really behind on my prepping projects and trying to catch up. Have multiple projects on both the firearms bench and the electronics bench so a bit overwhelmed [down side to multiple interests/talents]. Oh well, I'm more closely prepared than most...
@@richardkennedy815 Glad to hear that you're making progress in your preps. Spoiler, I have a different view on Meshtastic. This is coming later this year.
Good stuff man! I liked your novel way of demonstration by using acoustic coupling - cool stuff 🙂
Packet radio is where things get interesting. It's staggering how similar packet radio frames are to TCP/IP. I mean, it makes perfect sense - they both came from the same DARPA research. Packet radio was the original internet, and wireless to boot. Just add wires (or optical fiber, or radio channels that allow encryption) and bump up the speed and you have today's modern internet. Everything you can do over the internet today was originally done over RF before the internet existed. Is amateur radio HAMstrung? Heh - sorry, couldn't resist.
Keep up the good work man!
Thanks. People have become too reliant on the Internet and have forgotten how powerful packet networks were in the 80's and 90's. I'm a huge fan of bringing back old tech and applying a modern twist that has value for off grid use cases.
This is not a coincidence.. This is because TCP/IP (1974) was based on a wireless MAC (medium access control) protocol used in the Hawaiian islands for inter-island wireless data comms called the ALOHA protocol developed in the late in 1960s - 1973[2]. We studied this in my telecomm engineering classes in the 90s.. I'm surprised it's not called out specifically in the wikipedia articles below. I may need to dig up my references in this and include this important piece of Internet history.
[1] - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_network#History
[2] - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ALOHAnet#ALOHA_protocol
Love it! My guess is we'll need this information at some point. Just not yet.
Good sir, we cannot thank you enough for your heroic deed for sharing this information, but you've made yourself a marked man to the powers that be
BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! CRINGEY IDIOT IS THE RIGHT SCREEN NAME!
The powers that be are laughing
So another option for people that watch you don't get an amateur license. Get a land mobile license. And you can have any kind of level encryption that you want just like I have.
Every bit of information is money in the bank! Thanks for sharing.
My pleasure. File it away for later. ;-)
Very useful and simple. Better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it. Thanks.
Exactly!
I've watched a bunch of videos and all of yours are very informative and valuable. Thank you so much for sharing this educational piece. Continued success
You're very welcome!
Fantastic video… there is nothing wrong with academic exercises… it’s how we grow. I want to know as much info as I can fit into my head. Never know what the future may hold. 3 years ago if someone predicted the state of the world today, EVERYONE would have thought they were crazy.
Thanks. Other than the global elites, I doubt anyone could have predicted the state of things. Learn as much as you can. Cheers.
@@TheTechPrepper
- Geopolitics UA-cam channels like Caspian Report headed by an ex-government employee predicted Russian involvement a long time ago, many thought that war will start previous winter Olympics in 2018 as Putin tends to engage in such activities when there is some kind of public distraction going on but Trump was likely too wild card even for Putin while they got pretty good relationship anyway but Biden's handling of retreat from Afghanistan, bad relationship with Putin together with the West weakened by the pandemic could give Putin wrong impressions.
- Bill Gates made a talk on TED about the dangers of the pandemic over a decade ago, as virus outbreaks reoccurring on regular basis due to poor food industry practices (Swine Flu in the US, Mad Cows in the UK) Covid19 like event was likely inevitable in the long run.
- Economics in terms of national debt going down ever since Bush Junior took the office and neither the smarts of Obama nor the economic experience of Trump was able to change that. Every time someone proposes higher taxes on the majority of the population is ridiculed while higher taxes on corporations will likely be avoided through various loopholes already in the system or added through lobbying. There were legitimate worries that higher taxes on population will reduce purchasing power sufficiently to introduce recession while if a large portion of corporations will be unable to avoid paying higher taxes to pass this burden on consumers thus both recession and inflation occur. The US leadership will need all help it can get to get it through unharmed, and looking at the handling of Covid-19, I have my doubts about the government's ability to radically change this downhill trend, perhaps they can press brakes and slow it little at least.
Being aware of what's going on in the world will give you a head start to take countermeasures long before panicking crowds take over the streets. Take some time each day to look around at what is happening, it will save you a lot of financial troubles in the long run.
Only people who aren't really looking still think that everything will be fine, and because of these people that did not take any preventive measures living from paycheck to paycheck without any backups, politicians will be lying through their teeth in order to prevent the blind unaware majority from panicking every time when there will be such possibility.
I’m sure someone may have mentioned it already but I think it’s important to know…just realize that encryption alone is not going to make you “secure” in a war. Your message may be secure, but every time to transmit, your location could be compromised. It’s very easy to radio direction find even for a moderately equipped amateur. Stay safe
On TX when absolutely necessary. If you only tx and then shut up for a while it gets harder to find. They need a little constant tx to hone in.
Can you explain how finding a analog radio transmission location works?
@@Wolfspaine7N6there are many ways you can do this. The simplest and maybe crudest technique is to use a directional antenna and move around while watching the signal strength. As you move you can slowly close in on the transmitter, getting closer and closer. This is usually referred to as “fox hunting”. There are more sophisticated methods using multiple antennas that compare the phase shift of the signal to determine direction. With multiple receivers of this nature you can determine the approximate location of a transmitter without having much transmitter-on time needed. You can simply record the signals and analyze them later. There are of course even more sophisticated systems that use phased-array antennas on satellites in orbit….all you have to do is google this stuff if you want to learn more.
Very simple to do this. Nice work on showing this to us!
Complexity is the enemy of simple. Glad to share.
Wow, what a great tool for the kit. Thanks for the information!
You're welcome!
Try the Baofeng APRS cable. All it is doing is connecting the phones audio both ways to the radio and using VOX. What you put through it from the phone to the radio at that point is on you! :)
Great call out. I showed the APRS-K1 cable earlier in the series. The goal was for anyone to traffic data with just a radio and an Android device. I was trying to demonstrate that this approach works with no additional hardware and every radio.
@@TheTechPrepper Just found the channel so that's why.
@@W4TRI_Ronny Welcome to the channel. Those APRS-K1 cables are nice. My only complaint is that you have to use the VOX on the Baofeng. The TX tail is too long on those radios for some digital work--namely, packet.
@@TheTechPrepper Ever tried adjusting it in the menu? You know they do work or they would not still sell so many of them.
I have, but if I recall they don't adjust small enough. I was hoping for 100ms as the tail cutoff. My Ailunce HD1 will go as low as 500ms, but that's still a bit high for some packet modes.
I'm brand new to this (and a lot of other technology). Does the phone/app need or use any cell service or any connection to the internet. My three reasons for asking: 1) If a person is in a remote location with no cell service but can hit a (ham) repeater or function with simplex; 2) Anything that goes through cell/online is grabbed and or filtered; 3) In difficult times there may be no cell/internet service.
I'm assuming the app is independent. It's the password situation that needs to be well planned, eh?
Very helpful vid, and legal in many uses.
I prefer using one time pad for encryption, the encryption key changes every 5 numbers/characters. Absolutely support use of directional antenna. If you have to transmit encoded messages never send within 1000 meters of your home/base.Transmit and move.
Not legal in USA. But good to know for emergencies.
Key word : emergency.
Great job, short and simple great video. Thank you .
It's always nice to have a technique like this in your back pocket.
From Scotland and have a wee h3 tidradio & I've just whim bought it,so now in the UK the CB community radio bands aren't as popular as the states...so looking to see if I can download or program osiloscope or wave analyser functionality onto it aswell as is it possible I can send programs to another handset...send & receive data on them ? I'm a total noob , so just fumbling about the button & air waves & havnt made a connection yet ?
Good video! I'm surprised you didn't bring up using a cable to connect the mic/speakers of the Phone with the radio.
Thank you kindly 4 sharing
Could you update this video? I'm seeing ones for sale that say they have voice encryption natively.
Awesome video! Have a good weekend Gaston!
You, too!
Hello Gaston. One of the options to go further will be to set the squelch to 0 in case the transmission does not have enough power to open this "filter". Based on this, and because obviously this way we are going to have a lot of noise, what will be the mode to choose for you in the modem, which is more "resistant" to this noise? Thanks in advance for the reply. Hug. 🙏
omg.. you can pass mt63 in the noise floor where you can't even hear the noise floor change :) open squelch! wb9ybi 1990s
Well done. Technology has come to some amazing breakthroughs. Your KISS method is easy to learn and understand.
I'm reminded recently when Elon Musk described how easy it is to make a drone with off the shelf Technology that could hunt a specific person.
Education is the key to all of this. Knowing how and pushing the limits is how we grow.
Glad to hear it came across simple and clear. Some folks are already missing the point and bitching about the Baofeng. It's not my personal gear of choice, but it's the most prolific.
not legal but not really monitored either. In the years to come this is going to be huge in our own country. great video
Bingo. And, bingo.
Great video. Just curious Im a ham up here in British Columbia and do lots of horseback riding. How do you like your ULEFone? My Samsung has taken a few rides to the ground while riding and its not in good shape. So many ULEFONE models too.....
Very cool. This would probably work well in a lot of situations, but an active warzone might be too noisy of an environment.
Yes, you are right. This is the poor man's technique. The other videos in the series talk about connecting various radios to a computer or phone using cables. No issues with noise.
I'm building a slot coupler for the phone to slide into to shield from extraneous noise similar to the cradles of old. Easy to build and cheap. $5.00
This is awesome stuff.
Right? Poorman's secure comms.
Been experimenting with this a bit since I saw this video a couple years ago. Works fantastic, but i use rattlegram instead. Nice short bursts. Kinda limited by rattlegram for actual text length but if thats a problem you can send one message in chunks. If i was in a warzone i would want to reduce my rf signature, and fldigi takes too long. Fortunately, I have a business licence so i can fool with encryption over the air 😃
Academically, that was a great video
The Anytone 878 and 578 are capable of encrypted DMR. It's more costly than a baofeng, but theres a cost involved with cobbling together encryption for a feng too.
Great call out. I have had both of the radios since the end of 2022 and have been meaning to talk about the use of AES-256 bit encryption with these rigs.
Good stuff. Very interesting. What about cross platform. Android to apple or vise versa?
Great information and video. Any alternatives apps for Iphone to replace FLMSG?
What are the advantages of using AndFlmsg vs APRSDroid?
APRS restricts the size of the data to 67 characters. You will not be able to send the full data blob.
Do you have any knowledge on AES 256-bit key generators or how to "program" a group's phones with a key once it has been generated? It's certainly possible to manually type it in but time consuming and leaves room for error. Thanks in advance and keep up the great work!
thats radio software dependent. DMR software generally has a keyloader for that.
Why it never works as shown on UA-cam 😑
Uv-13 pro with GPS has an encryption setting. No clue how it works but I just enabled it and could hear nothing through a channel with a tone set up.
Checked and it's Frequency Hopping.
Hey. So, taking legality aside (or let's imagine we're outside of the US legal realm), there's a way to replace OSI's layer 2 with AX.25 and then use TLS authentication over layer 7. There's a paper on the internet, where the authors were able to do it. In addition, they were also able to throw GPG into the mix. GPG is pretty cool, since you can' encrypt/decrypt with a per-shared key, just like in your example. I think security aspect is important in HAM. How are you going to protect yourself against call sign spoofing? Can the data be change in transit? Is there a way to appy CIA triad to the comm over AX.25?
Just another thought here...instead of encrypting, one can encode the text, like text to base64 or HEX. This isn't encryption and could be decoded by anyone, but good luck guessing the encoder (security through obscurity).
I would classify the approach I discussed as the poorman's method. It would work well unless a nation-state is set on deciphering your traffic.
Switching the OSI network stack is interesting, but throughput and bandwidth will be the limiting factor over RF. I'll have to read the paper when I have time. Thanks for sharing.
Since we're talking about a theoretical scenario where there is no rule of law, callsigns will not matter. But, if you are referring to using the call sign as the method for identifying the other party, that could be an issue. If the password key is secure and not known to others it would likely be safe to assume that you are likely communicating with the intended party.
The goal for this video was not to have the perfect secure comms solution, but to have something that is simple, effective and more secure than plain voice or digital to mitigate eavesdropping.
yeah, that is where one wants to start adding a hmac to the message as a verification.
what i dont understand is what are the backend requirements, , , ? ? internet ? cell phone carrier ? bluetooth ? etc
The example is just radio to radio RF. You just need line of sight between both operators. There is no Bluetooth, WiFi, cell or Internet required.
Utilizing encryption is legal in the business bands, private carrier repeater systems and radio common carrier systems.
That requires internet within bluetooth no?
Why dont they just make a simple device you attach to the speaker that encrypts your voice and same on the other end where each needs a code to hear it?
so static might break up that sound coming over the air and you would get a different thing on the other end, no?
Great series keep up the good work. Can you cover a small business license to be legal for encrypted radios? I work at an airport and would like encryption. Explain the process please and budget radio options for this to include a repeater.
Business FCC licensees canuse encryption in the US. UA-cam Notarubicon.
Damn good video and best bang for the buck. Encrypted DMR is available via firmware hacks, but that costs a lot more money. I'm sure the zedheads heads are exploding over this video now, lol.
Thanks. This is the most basic setup I could think of. Technically this works with the BTech APRS-K1 cable for the Baofeng if you enable VOX on the Baofeng. But, I did not want to introduce another component.
Hopefully, this will get the wheels turning for folks.
TYT MD-380 & TYT MD-390 have 128 bit/32 digit hexadecimal key encryption, easy to program, analogue/digital all in a handheld rugged built radio & costs under $200 USD.
Love it Zed Heads😅😅😅
I have the Btech 6X2 Pro
and it uses encryption, Bluetooth among other capabilities.
@TheTechPrepper
You appear to be running some version of Ubuntu. Can you suggest a version of LINUX that's best suited to Ham radio 📻 applications?
73!
I use Ubuntu, but DragonOS was designed around SDR support, so that could be a good option.
witchcraft... do you know how to use atak? its my understanding you can integrate comms into that.
Yes. I know how to use ATAK. In fact, I am planning on writing a commercial plugin for it next year for some offgrid comms work. It's a nice platform.
Should you put your video's together on single memory device and make available let me know. Would consider purchase.
Does anyone know why encryption over radio is illegal in the first place??? Is it a state or federal law? Thanks in advance
Encryption is not permitted for amateur radio (Part 97) as you're not allowed to obscure the meaning of a transmission on the amateur radio bands. It's federal law that is governed by the FCC. Encryption is allowed for commercial use with a business license (Part 90). There's also Part 95 which covers MURS, FRS, GMRS, and CB. I tried to unpack whether or not encryption was allowed under MURS, but it turned out to be rats nest when I started to look at each allowed emission type. This is part of the reason why I'm going to explore a business license and find an inexpensive business radio (EF Johnson or Hytera). I'm no expert here, so I'm happy for others to jump in.
@@TheTechPrepper It does bother me somewhat that if voice/data networks are disrupted then we have no means of secure comms with family/resources. Perhaps I haven't seen your content on this topic yet, but I would love to learn your emergency (without licence) protocols, including any viable tactics for detection prevention (outside of mobility). I would never cross fed law yet I highly value knowledge and contingencies.
I'm feeling very inspired! thank you!!
@@TheTechPrepper I so appreciate your hard work that you're putting into this channel. You restated the FCC rule about amateur radio, but there's still no explanation of "why" our messages are required to be plaintext aside from public codecs like Morse or JS8Call.
@@PatrickKQ4HBD I am no expert in the exact legal matters, so I avoid the conversation. Other channels cover the legal issues. My goal is just to point out that it is not legal and it's up to the viewer to make their own determination on how they want to use the technique and research the laws on their own.
Allegedly, this is to prevent companies from abusing ham radio and using it to do business because with encryption its impossible to prove in court what the content of the message was if all you have is ciphertexts.
Would there be a way to only have US military assets hear you in a SHTF situation? Like an enemy force was around and you were maybe not in America? I don't know anything about radios at this time. But was curious if your boned if you need to talk with allies without baddies finding/hearing you. Thanks so much for the vid it was super cool.
If you separate out text encryption isn’t much of an obstacle. Other people’s encryption is of course an option but it’s actually not all that difficult to write your own. Sending text is the really valuable step.
Correct on all accounts. Cheers!
@@TheTechPrepper thanks! These days no one talks about “unbreakable” codes. Instead they talk about “leakage rates” or how long it takes to break a code. 🤔 Well, if a code only has to resist being broken for 30 min or so, code word cyphers aren’t completely out of the game. (Well, maybe, there are newspapers that publish them like crossword puzzles so people can break them for fun. 🤷 If your opposition has a champion player ….. but then if they don’t have a bunch of people who know your language well it might take time to dig up the resources.)
Someone come up with a way for a hard wired cell to encrypt voice comms, and on the receiving end with the proper key also decrypt comms. Bonus points if you can including mapping data as well. Make the android phone be the brains of the communication.
Dude why are you telling people how to have private conversations. Thats almost like a second chance on the fourth amendment. 😂
Power to the people!
Very interested in putting together a "in the field" data/digital link on Baofeng UV-82's and UV-9R Pro's [not unlike the mil KDU concept] for team comms. By then crossbanding such communications into vehicle radio [already have this part] I have more than adequate comms for my area. The data or digital part of the puzzle is where I am still stumped. Can you direct me on this?
I would suggest AES 256 level encryption....currently available on the latest Anytone 878 and Alinco's latest DJ MD5 DMR radios
I've had an AnyTone 578 (manpack) and 878 video series planned for awhile. It's a good route to go if you need AES-256 encryption.
Yes I'm a ham
And yes we're trying to figure out how to do secure voice when there is no law, shtf,stuff
Never realized it was so easy as this thank you very very much excellent idea
What is that model Baofeng and battery in the video? Thanks
Is this also possible on Mac? And it IS legal in the US on MURS band.
Hi.
If you will use attenuation and limit the power to the limit where the licence or permissions are not required and within the regulation - then it might be possible legally practice encrypted coms - subject to carefully checked regulations.
The MT63 is not designed to be operated on FM - is designed to be operated on SSB. There are specially designed or most suitable modes for FM like 8PSK and VARA-FM. There are articles on the subject - info on that can be found in Fldigi manual dedicated to digital modes - 8PSK works well with VOX and acoustic coupling and AndFlmsg.
It is recommended to not use government recommended encryption - like National Institute For Science and Technology publish recommendations for encryption. It is advised to not use encryption recommended by government - it is recommended to use one of Bruce Schneier algorithms. RSA encryption is most known for easiness to be decoded by special units - for them it is transparent.
There are HT with encryption or frequency hopping - most of Chinese DPMR radios for $50 have encryption as standard - like RECENT RS309D.
Alinco has HT with AES-256 encryption - DJ-MD5T
Having encrypted comms or even possibility of encrypted comms gives lots of fan.
All the best - 73
All great points. Thanks for sharing.
can you use those apps on the phone and computer without wifi or a phone signal?
Yes. No cell or WiFi required. In general, all the applications that I discuss on the channel are 100% offline. I am not a fan of the Internet, cell network or any grid tie. Good question!
@@TheTechPrepper did you do a video on how far it will reach or how it works that way? Seems like a great alternative to communications with voice.
@@philxskillz The distance is subject to radio line of site. Your distance can improve based on location, antenna system, environment and power. I did a field exercise where we tested the acoustic coupling. Here's a direct link. I was about 1.5 miles out, but only running 0.5 watts. ua-cam.com/video/HtM0drzD2kw/v-deo.html
excellent content :)
Thanks. I'm exploring a few other topics related to secure comms. Stay tuned.
Tell your (our) friends to invest in the Anytone AT-D878 II Plus. It does ARC4 and AES voice encryption
Nice toughbook!
Thanks!
I know this question isn’t exactly related but I’m in the market for a laptop. What make/model would you Recomend as a general purpose that also is good for radio comm?
So if the government misses out on remote communications it’s “illegal”
We're about to embark on our 6th humanitarian mission to Ukraine. Handy info you've shared. Thanks!
Question, do you know of any way to do the same or similar operation just on a PC (Is there a Message Encryptor for PC). And by the way this is awesome.
Would you recommend an 878 for secure comms or old Moto xts2500?
If you are already familiar with the XTS-2500, have the CPS, have all the hardware, have the correct firmware, have the correct entitlements, and know how to load the crypto, go with the Motorola option. If you're new to Motorola and don't have the time for learn all the details of the Motorola XTS line , you're better of going with an AnyTone 878.
@@TheTechPrepper Thank you for the helpful reply
Which is the fastest transmit?
Can not get the mt63 protocols to work.....what gives??
I wonder if you could us a simple solfa cipher and have a decoder listening on the receiver end
Thanks for putting another option out there. I'll have to dive into it as I am not familiar with the Solfa cipher.
as someone who lives in south america... thank you very much lol
You are very welcome. Cheers from the US.
Great educational video 😂
Great video Gaston. Are there apps that can do RSA-2048 or RSA-4096 level encryption?
I haven't looked into it, but I'm sure someone watching will have the answer. If not, the application would be trivial to write.
Where did you get the modem app
Search for AndFlmsg. You do not need to go through the app store.
I didn’t know that was against the law. Good to know thanks
Id like to see a version of Ribbit or Rattlegram that you could enable encryption on.... obviously only for use in non ham environments.
That works. I've done it over my business frequency.
@@TheTechPrepper yeah I have tested it phone to phone using an aes program first then copying and pasting but it would be awesome if it was baked in.
@@CowboyPilot79 It's a simple modification to the Rattlegram to support encryption. I am sure that the developers do not want have any liability on their hands. I also have built encryption into my custom applications, but do not distribute the modifications for the liability issue.
@@TheTechPrepper that was next on my list haha. I figure I'll just add a pop-up that says only for use on approved means or something. The only times I've actually seen developers gone after is when the only actual use for something would be an illegal use. 99% of BitTorrent users use it to Pirate copyrighted material but there's a 1% base of use for legitimate stuff. I've seen a lot of user convictions for piracy but none against BitTorrent itself.
How about the same for voice comms?
Take a look at the last version of AnyTone 878. It support AES-256 encryption.
Are there equivalent iOS apps that will work?
Do you have the setup procedures for fldigi? Which MT63 are you using for you demonstration? Thanks
Can we send message to other walkie talkies without Internet or cell phone
Yes
@@TheTechPrepper ok thanks. You have any videos on that?
Can you run ATAK on the Ulefone? Success with that app seems to vary based on the device
Yes. I did it last year on the Armor X7.
@@TheTechPrepper righteous! Thank you!
Any analogue modem coupling apps for ios?
Basically, use it without encryption. Thanks man
Really like stuff like this and would be curious what it might look like to prying eyes (or ears)
Hey does this android application work without a SIM card or Wi-Fi?
Great video.
Thank you. The info needs to be out there.
@@TheTechPrepper it absolutely does. This is the kind of information that could save lives.