[ISN] FBI: Finding criminal data on cell phones and game consoles is tough

From: InfoSec News <alerts_at_private>
Date: Mon, 26 Apr 2010 00:41:03 -0500 (CDT)
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2010/042310-fbi-cell-phones-game-consoles.html

By Tim Greene
Network World
April 23, 2010

Non-traditional communications devices such as smartphones and game 
consoles pose a particular problem to law enforcement agencies trying to 
milk them for forensic data that reveals criminal activity, attendees 
were told at the 2010 Computer Forensics Show in New York City.

"Forensic tools for cell phones are in their infancy," says Stephen 
Riley, a forensic examiner with the FBI's Computer Analysis and Response 
Team. "There's lots of different carriers, different phones, different 
cables - just try to keep up." Smartphones can communicate via SMS, MMS, 
mobile e-mail, mobile internet access, VoIP and traditional cellular 
voice networks, Riley says, making each machine a potential treasure 
trove of information but also a nightmare maze of possible proprietary 
technologies to unlock it.

Retrieving SMS messages can depend on the model of phone, the carrier, 
the time of day, even the country in which the phone is used. SIM cards 
removed from phones carry potentially useful forensic information, but 
unless it is associated with a particular phone's PIN, it's 
inaccessible. Perhaps the personal unlock feature controlled by phone 
manufacturers could release the data, but that requires knowing the make 
and model of the phone, he says.

The ready availability of cell phones is also a problem. Searches of 
suspects' residences can turn up drawers-full of cell phones that are no 
longer used but never thrown out. Yet they can demand valuable forensic 
time.

[...]


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Received on Sun Apr 25 2010 - 22:41:03 PDT

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