Radio nerd here. (73 y'all)

I've seen pictures of people getting arrested and one thing I've noticed is that every now and again I'll see an FRS/GMRS radio with some of these rioters.

What does that mean? Well, it means they're organized. And you can be too.

As a radio operator, when we do events and such a common thing to do is to set up a "net control" or central command or some sort of base station. This station will have high power and an effective antenna. People can then meander around with an HT (handheld radio) and communicate back to the base.

This is effective in that two HT's, which are lower power and don't have a nice antenna profile, can communicate via the base station (otherwise known as a repeater).

This can work in a couple of different ways. In repeater mode, the HT's can all communicate with the higher power repeater and it rebroadcasts and everybody hears it. Or there might be a net control operator, the HT's communicate with net control (a person) and net control responds with advice or orders or some sort of information they wouldn't otherwise have.

This radio right here is one that is inexpensive and that I've seen used by people getting arrested. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BXCF85T/

Knowing radio technology, I can take an educated guess and say they're using GMRS. Here's why, a nice chart that shows the overlap between FRS and GMRS frequencies: https://wiki.radioreference.com/index.php/FRS/GMRS_combined_channel_chart

You'll notice peak FRS power is 2w while GMRS peak power is 50w. If they're following legal operating power, which a lot of radios require in hardware, then that means they're operating between the frequencies of 462.5500 - 467.7250.

What does this mean and what can you do?

Well you can get a GMRS radio and antenna and listen and record. This is evidence if they're coordinating criminal activity and could help in a RICO case.

So what to do... Keep in mind this is a "line of site" radio technology, so everything's within a mile or so.

Option 1: You can spend $20 on the same radio I posted (or any GMRS radio) and set it to scan between the above frequencies. You're free to roam around.

Option 2: You can get a GMRS radio (even the HT) and use a vehicle mounted antenna. This will use the vehicle as a ground plane and have much better reception, around 3.5dBi. Example: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NWYVM94

Option 3: You can get a base station antenna and radio, this will have the most gain (up to 6.5dBi) with this antenna, but you're not going to be mobile. Example: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0784FQ9VB

They're talking to each other and coordinating right under your nose, this is how you go about listening in. Record any crimes. Fuck it, give them false orders too. Don't let them own this technology, we can use it too.