Tait Radio Communications, a global leader in providing radio solutions for public safety, recently launched a new encryption solution at this year's APCO International Conference and Expo in Houston, TX (Aug 1-4).
The new Tait Key Management Facility (KMF) is a flexible, powerful tool for any agency seeking to confidently and efficiently manage its P25 encryption across their entire fleet. This managed encryption helps remove the threat of eavesdroppers listening in on private conversations between public safety first responders, according to ressreleasepoint.com,
"The critical aspect is that the keys used to encrypt and decrypt messages are managed well, because badly managed encryption can be worse than no encryption at all," says Simon Britten Tait’s senior product manager.
“Only the easy-to-use Tait KMF has a custom Dashboard enabling each crypto officer to see information the way they need to. Different teams' keys can be updated at a time to suit their operational profile," says Britten. "The Tait KMF can update groups of radios over the air, at the press of a button. Other manufacturers' P25 radios can also be managed conveniently, while remote diagnostics save technicians' time.
“Secure radio communications are essential for public safety organizations wanting to improve the safety of their staff and the communities they serve. Crucial and sensitive information is often exchanged across radio communications networks, and if intercepted by third parties, this information could compromise the safety of first responders as well as the general public. These first responders will share high quality information and perform at their best when they are confident that their messages are heard only by the intended recipients," adds Britten.
“The biggest threat to secure encryption comes internally. In particular, key and radio mismanagement can leave an organization more vulnerable than if they do not have encryption. If encryption is compromised as a result of poor key management procedures it can often lead to a heavily increased workload, result in heavy financial costs or worse: put first responders and the public in danger. Tait has developed an encryption solution and offers a range of services to ease the burden of secure communications for public safety agencies," concludes Britten.