Editing Pirate radio (section)

==Piracy in amateur and two-way radio==

Illegal use of licensed radio spectrum (also known as ''bootlegging'' in [[Citizens band radio|CB]] circles)<ref name="Gibilisco1997">{{cite book|author=Stan Gibilisco|title=TAB Encyclopedia of Electronics for Technicians and Hobbyists|url=https://archive.org/details/tabencyclopediao0000gibi|url-access=registration|date=1 January 1997|publisher=McGraw-Hill|isbn=978-0-07-024190-9}}</ref> is fairly common and takes several forms.

===Unlicensed operation===
Particularly associated with amateur radio and licensed personal communication services such as [[GMRS]], unlicensed operation refers to use of radio equipment on a section of spectrum for which the equipment is designed but on which the user is not licensed to operate (most such operators are informally known as "bubble pack pirates" from the sealed plastic retail packaging common to such walkie-talkies). 

While piracy on the US GMRS band, for example, is widespread (some estimates have the number of total GMRS users outstripping the number of licensed users by several orders of magnitude), such use is generally disciplined only in cases where the pirate's activity interferes with a licensee. A notable case is that of former United States amateur operator [[Jack Gerritsen]] operating under the revoked [[call sign]] KG6IRO<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.w5yi.org/ama_news_article.php?id=85 |title=W5YI Report |publisher=W5yi.org |access-date=2011-06-16}}</ref> who was successfully prosecuted by the FCC for unlicensed operation and malicious interference.<ref>{{cite news|title=Apologetic Radio Jammer Jack Gerritsen Gets Seven Years, Fines|url=http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2006/09/19/100/|work=ARRL Web|date=Sep 19, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070402214226/http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2006/09/19/100/|archive-date=April 2, 2007}}</ref> A subcategory of this is free banding, the use of allocations nearby a legal allocation, most typically the 27&nbsp;MHz [[Citizen's Band]] using modified or purpose-built gear.
===Inadvertent interference===
Inadvertent interference is common when personal communications gear is brought into countries where it is not certified to operate. Such interference results from clashing frequency allocations, and occasionally requires wholesale reallocation of an existing band due to an insurmountable interference problem; for example, the 2004 approval in Canada of the unlicensed use of the United States [[General Mobile Radio Service]] frequencies due to interference from users of [[Family Radio Service|FRS]]/GMRS radios from the United States, where [[Industry Canada]] had to transfer a number of licensed users on the GMRS frequencies to unoccupied channels to accommodate the expanded service.

===Deliberate or malicious interference===
Interference may be deliberate or malicious, such as the use of two-way radio to harass or jam other users of a channel. Such behaviour is widely prosecuted, especially when it interferes with mission-critical services such as [[Airband|aviation radio]] or [[marine VHF radio]].

===Illegal equipment===
Equipment could be illegally modified or not certified for a particular band. Such equipment includes illegal [[linear amplifier]]s for [[CB radio]], antenna or circuit modifications on walkie-talkies, the use of "export" radios for free banding, or the use of amateur radios on unlicensed bands that amateur gear is not certified for. The use of [[marine VHF radio]] gear for inland mobile radio operations is common in some countries, with enforcement difficult since marine VHF is generally the province of maritime authorities.