Is My City Encrypted?
Search our database of 2,838 encrypted agencies across 52 states to check if your local police scanner access has been blocked.
Showing results for . Search a different city.
Try: "Los Angeles", "Miami-Dade", "Cook County", or your city name
Encryption by the Numbers
Most Encrypted States
What if my city is encrypted?
What encryption actually means
Encryption blocks all consumer scanners from decoding police radio. No hardware upgrade changes that. It is a policy choice, not a technical requirement.
Learn more about encryption →Other communities have reversed it
Berkeley, Palo Alto, and others successfully pushed back after encryption decisions were made. The decision can be challenged.
See success stories →How to push back
Our guide covers FOIA requests, public testimony, coalition-building, and what to say to elected officials at each stage.
How to fight back →Every encryption decision can be challenged
Every encrypted department got there through a process—usually with little public input. Whether your city has already gone dark or is still open, there is a way to weigh in.