All Data Streams are Scrambled with Synthetic Static and Decoded by a Select Few with Weyland-Yutani Equipment and Software
Chapter 22 Data Stream
“The signal came in clearly, reaching from the transmitters on the surface to the ship in geostationary orbit above the Sea of Sorrows. What came through looked, for all intents and purposes, like so much white noise. Sometimes that was inevitable, especially in areas where interference caused signal reflection and signal breakdown….
Andrea Rollins didn’t care in the least about white noise or interference. She did, however, pay a great deal of attention to the signal embedded inside of that synthetic static. Weyland-Yutani owned the patents on the devices that created that artificial signal, and on the hardware and software that could break it down into its component parts. It wasn’t a technology currently available on the market. Hers was the only computer on the ship capable of breaking down the coded information.”
Year 2497, Alien: Sea of Sorrows, page 160-161.
Those on the Surface of LV-426 in 2179 had the exact same issue with their equipment.
“Despite all the video wizardry the lieutenant could command, none of the individual suit cameras provided a clear picture of what the troops were seeing.”
Year 2179, Aliens novelization, page 142.
