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Cell phones contain a wealth of personal digital information that can be accessed through forensic analysis beyond just call logs and contacts. Law enforcement sees cell phone data as increasingly important evidence for investigations, as nearly all crimes now have a digital component, while some are concerned about privacy issues. Experts are developing new forensic methods to retrieve deeper data from cell phones, prompting praise from crime fighters but also worries over civil liberties.

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reneec13
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114 views

Layout

Cell phones contain a wealth of personal digital information that can be accessed through forensic analysis beyond just call logs and contacts. Law enforcement sees cell phone data as increasingly important evidence for investigations, as nearly all crimes now have a digital component, while some are concerned about privacy issues. Experts are developing new forensic methods to retrieve deeper data from cell phones, prompting praise from crime fighters but also worries over civil liberties.

Uploaded by

reneec13
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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“ Cell phones are ubiquitous...

nearly all crimes have a digital


component to them

”
From crucial tracking evidence
in the Scott Peterson murder
trial to exculpatory call records
in the Duke alleged rape case,
cell phones have emerged as
an important resource for both
criminal investigators and
defense lawyers. Now a small
group of international forensic
code breakers is working to go
beyond the obvious and famil- In the meantime, all of us
iar — the call logs and address — innocent citizen and crimi-
books — and tap deeper into nals alike — continue to pump
our phones, into a hidden gold ever more data into cell phones
mine of personal information. and PDAs, those indispensable
Their work is prompting ku- companions that have so much
dos from crime busters while to say about us.
raising concern among civil
libertarians.

“Cell phones are ubiquitous Most cell phone owners think


in today’s world and nearly simply removing a phone’s
all crimes have a digital com- SIM card removes personal
ponent to them,” says Rick information, but the phone’s
Mislan, an assistant professor internal memory, even commu-
of computer and informa- nication exchanged between
tion technology at Purdue the phone and its server, re-
University. Mislan, a former main. Phone manuals detail
U.S. Army electronic warfare how to perform multiple reset
officer, is one of a handful of commands to erase personal
experts working on forensic information and some online
methods to access the inner recycling phone services of-
secrets in cell phones. fer command sets for specific
phones, but most people never
Typically, law enforcement bother to go through the tedi-
agencies rely on simply ous process, Mislan says.
“thumbing through” a cell

It Knows Too Much...


phone to retrieve data, says Just as emerging fingerprint
Sgt. Michael Harrington, a de- and DNA technologies were
tective with the Michigan State challenged, cell phone evi-
By Hilary Hylton, Illustrations by Renee Chen police. dence is under scrutiny.

67 68

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