Police Department Fully Encrypted Discovered via RadioReference

Deal Township Police

Monmouth, New Jersey

How we verified this

As of August 2026 RadioReference's NJICS listing flags both Deal police talkgroups, dispatch and tactical, as fully encrypted, while the borough's beach patrol talkgroup remains in the clear and active on Broadcastify Calls.

Checked against a primary source on 2026-08-09: radioreference.com . Encryption status changes without notice — confirm the current picture on the live RadioReference database before relying on it.

What you can do right now

Encryption Details

Encryption Type P25 AES-256
Scope Discovered via RadioReference (2 encrypted talkgroups)
Technical Details Inferred from RadioReference

Verified Talkgroup Data

Verified Aug 9, 2026 Low confidence
2 Total Talkgroups
2 Encrypted
0 Unencrypted
100% Encrypted
Radio System: New Jersey Interoperability Communications System (NJICS)
View 2 talkgroups
DEC Alpha Tag Description Status
5579 Deal PD Disp Deal PD Dispatch Encrypted
5581 Deal PD Tac Deal PD Tac Encrypted

Monmouth County Context

Deal Township Police isn't an outlier here: 26 of the 26 public-safety agencies we track in Monmouth County are fully encrypted (100%), so most departments nearby have made the same move.

What This Means

There is no partial access here: routine dispatch is encrypted alongside everything else, so a scanner picks up nothing from this agency at all.

See encryption status nationwide Interactive map showing which US police departments have encrypted their radios. Open the encryption map →

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Deal Township Police radio encrypted?

Yes — Deal Township Police's radio system runs on P25 AES-256 encryption. There is no partial access here: routine dispatch is encrypted alongside everything else, so a scanner picks up nothing from this agency at all.

Can I listen to Deal Township Police on a police scanner?

No. Deal Township Police has fully encrypted their radio communications using P25 AES-256. No consumer scanner can decode encrypted transmissions.

Why did Deal Township Police encrypt their radio?

Officer safety and operational security are the reasons agencies give. What rarely comes with that explanation is Monmouth County-specific evidence that open communications ever caused a problem, while the loss of public oversight and the friction with still-unencrypted neighboring agencies are both immediate and real.

Can Monmouth County reverse the encryption decision?

Yes. Whoever made this call for Deal Township Police can also unmake it; there's no technical lock-in. The approach that has worked elsewhere combines public-records requests, direct council pressure, and a coordinated local coalition.

What can I do about Deal Township Police encryption?

Contact the officials who oversee Deal Township Police's budget directly and ask why full encryption was chosen over partial alternatives. Pair that with a FOIA request for recordings and policy records, and look for an existing coalition in Monmouth County, or start one, since agencies respond differently to organized, sustained pressure than to individual complaints.

Data source: RadioReference Wiki + RadioReference API (verified)

Checked against a primary source on 2026-08-09 — see "How we verified this" above. Encryption status changes; confirm at RadioReference before relying on it.

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