8
The FCC Wants You To Know
However, there are some transmissions that you
should never intentionally listen to. These include:
•
Telephone conversations (cellular, cordless, or
other private means of telephone signal
transmission)
•
Pager transmissions
•
Any scrambled or encrypted transmissions
According to the Electronic Communications Privacy
Act (ECPA), you are subject to fines and possible
imprisonment for intentionally listening to, using, or
divulging the contents of such a conversation unless
you have the consent of a party to the conversation
(unless such activity is otherwise illegal). This
scanner has been designed to prevent the reception
of cellular telephone transmissions and the
decoding of scrambled transmissions. This is done
to comply with the legal requirement that scanners
be manufactured so they are not easy to modify to
pick up these transmissions. Do not open your
scanner’s case to make any modifications that could
allow it to pick up transmissions that are illegal to
monitor. Modifying or tampering with your scanner’s
internal components or using it in a way other than
as described in this manual could invalidate your
warranty and void your FCC authorization to operate it.
In some areas, mobile use of this scanner is
unlawful or requires a permit. Check the laws in your
area. It is also illegal in many areas (and a bad idea
everywhere) to interfere with the duties of public
safety officials by traveling to the scene of an
incident without authorization.
