North Dakota Bureau of Criminal investigation
Statewide, North Dakota
How we verified this
As of August 2026 RadioReference lists the Bureau of Criminal Investigation talkgroups on the state SIRN system as encrypted, including "415 | T Enc | BCI FGO DSP" and "401 | T Enc | BCI FGO OP1".
Encryption Details
Verified Talkgroup Data
What This Means
Everything this agency transmits is encrypted, dispatch included. For anyone outside the department — residents, reporters, neighbouring responders — the channel is simply silent.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is North Dakota Bureau of Criminal investigation radio encrypted?
Yes — North Dakota Bureau of Criminal investigation's radio system runs on P25 DES-OFB encryption. Everything this agency transmits is encrypted, dispatch included. For anyone outside the department — residents, reporters, neighbouring responders — the channel is simply silent.
Can I listen to North Dakota Bureau of Criminal investigation on a police scanner?
No. North Dakota Bureau of Criminal investigation has fully encrypted their radio communications using P25 DES-OFB. No consumer scanner can decode encrypted transmissions.
Why did North Dakota Bureau of Criminal investigation encrypt their radio?
Officer safety and operational security are the reasons agencies give. What rarely comes with that explanation is Statewide 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 Statewide County reverse the encryption decision?
Yes. Encryption is a policy choice made by department leadership or elected officials, not a technical requirement, so it can be reversed the same way. Public pressure, city council advocacy, and organized local coalitions have reversed encryption decisions elsewhere.
What can I do about North Dakota Bureau of Criminal investigation encryption?
Contact the officials who oversee North Dakota Bureau of Criminal investigation'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 Statewide County, or start one, since agencies respond differently to organized, sustained pressure than to individual complaints.