Minneapolis emergency incident dashboard launched for 911 calls as encryption nears

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Minneapolis officials have created a new emergency incident dashboard that they say will allow people to monitor categorized police response calls, as the city’s first responders are set to begin encryption of their emergency response communications – cutting off residents’ ability to listen to monitor department responses in real-time.

Minneapolis emergency incidents dashboard

What we know:

On April 14, officials announced the city had launched its new emergency incidents dashboard that they say will be updated every 30 minutes, and provide citizens with information such as:

• 911 calls over the last 12 hours and locations of incidents
• Categorized incidents by police, fire and BCR calls
• Date, agency, neighborhood, or problem code categorization

Minneapolis 911 call encryption

Dig deeper:

The dashboard launch aligns with the city looking to encrypt its emergency-response communications channels by May 1.

The move is an effort to comply with Minnesota data privacy regulations, to enhance the privacy and safety of both first responders and residents.

City officials say encryption could help reduce the spreading of false or misleading rumors on social media.

But its detractors say it stifles transparency in a department still regaining community trust five years after George Floyd’s death.

Though it will be the largest state agency to employ encryption, other agencies already doing the same include Hennepin County Law Mains, Edina, St. Louis Park, MSP Airport Police, and the counties of Dakota, Scott, and Carver, and the City of Rochester.

In 2019, the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office was the first agency in the state to adopt encryption.

Several cities such as San Francisco, Denver and New York have also switched to encrypted channels in recent years.