Android Pattern Lock Stumps FBI

[Andima]

The FBI is seeking a warrant to compel Google to unlock an Android phone that was confiscated from an alleged pimp. Special Agent Jonathan R. Cupina of the San Diego division is requesting the warrant to authorize Google to "provide law enforcement with any and all means of gaining access, including login and password information, password reset, and/or manufacturer default code" to the contents and memory of an alleged pimp's Android phone.

Full news:- Android Pattern Lock Stumps FBI | PCWorld

 

[aysiu]

Is it encrypted? If it's not encrypted, the forensics people should have little trouble getting info off the phone.

 

[lunatic59]

My guess is if they "hack" it using other means, it may make any information inadmissible. They're most likely just crossing their I's and dotting their T's.

 

[jerofld]

Is it encrypted? If it's not encrypted, the forensics people should have little trouble getting info off the phone.

This is what I was thinking. There are multiple states that have those devices that can just get a dump of the /data folder and /sdcard and put them in patrol cars. The only way of defeating those is with some good encryption and/or being able to shut off the USB port before it can be scanned. And I doubt the alleged pimp was smart enough to encrypt his phone.

Edit: Further reading shows that they want to use the evidence in court, so they can't hack it. Odd that those forensics devices are not authorized for evidence retrieval.

 

[aysiu]

I'm not sure if it's the same thing for phones, but I know police can still have admissible evidence from a cloned computer hard drive. So they don't touch the original hard drive to poke around--they just clone it and then search the cloned hard drive for evidence.

 

[jerofld]

Maybe because they can't get it into PC Sync mode, they can't clone it. LOL