Share
Most Motorola MotoTRBO radios support three different levels of privacy (encryption)
- Basic
- Improved
- BEA
Certain lower-level models only work with Basic and Enhanced. Entry-level models only support Basic Privacy. The Motorola DP4000 series supports all encryption while DP1400 only supports Basic Privacy.
Basic Privacy only provides basic 16-bit XOR encryption and provides only very basic eavesdropping protection. There is only one key and it must be the same in all walkie-talkies that are to be part of a specific call. Radios that do not have this key will hear a distorted sound when another user is transmitting.
Enhanced privacy uses the well-known and widely implemented Alleged RC4 algorithm. The key length is 40 bits. It is also possible to program a radio like this with multiple keys, which can be selected by changing the channel. The key can only be written in the walkie-talkies, so the key must be kept in a safe & secure location if you want to add extra walkie-talkies.
AES 256 bit offers the highest level of protection. The radios uses a symmetric group key, which means that the same keys must be programmed in all radios that are to be part of a specific call. The radio also supports multiple keys, so for example it is possible to have one key per talkgroup or channel.
AES256 is not standard available in the radio and requires you to purchase a software license. In all cases, the encryption is applied only to the calls from the radio. This enables a relatively simple fixed infrastructure (with repeaters, for example) to provide end-to-end encryption. If full encryption is required, it may be wise to use something like Dimetra Express consider, that Air Interface supports Encryption (ie header + payload).