Smartphones and mobile data mining

Advanced
Techniques in
Forensic
Examination of
Smartphones
2010
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Smartphones market growth

Data provided by FutureSource Consulting

Smartphones market is growing even while general mobile phones market falling
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Smartphone is a small PC

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Smartphone as: Cell phone

* - Usually these features are not utilized by smartphones
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Smartphone as: Address book

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Smartphone as: Planner

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Smartphone as: Messenger

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Smartphone as: GPS navigator

* - Available in EXIF header for many new models
** - Available in smartphones with Nokia LifeBlog application installed
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Smartphone as: Web client

* - Available for some IM clients

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Smartphone as: PC

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Standard extraction methods
There are 2 standard ways to get forensic information from smartphones: logical and
physical analysis

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Logical analysis for smartphones
Caller groups
Custom field labels

General phone
Speed dials
information
Messages from
Contacts*
custom
folders

Calendar
Event log
Deleted
messages
Notes
information

Calls history

Service center
timestamps
Messages*
GPS information
Files*

Location tagged data

Settings*

Web browser data

Bookmarks
IM
client data

* - Available data set is restricted and depends highly on manufacturer implementation

3rd party apps

1) The information extracted by all logical protocols is only the top of the iceberg

2) All logical protocols were developed for data synchronization
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Physical analysis for smartphones

How to deal with
gigabytes of
that?
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Standard extraction methods: Summary

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How to extract data without a headache?
In 2002 Oxygen Software invented the 3rd way - analysis using a special agent
application working inside smartphone OS

* - Agent can extract all the information available for native OS applications
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Agent application usage

General phone information & SIM card data
Contacts with all fields and custom field labels
Caller groups & Speed dials
Event Log
Calendar events
Tasks & Notes
Messages from standard and custom folders
Deleted messages information
Service center timestamp
Camera snapshots, video clips and voice records
File system
GPS & Location tagged information
Web browser cache & bookmarks
IM clients data
3rd party applications with their information
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- Protected operating
system files
- Memory dump


Afraid of writing to device?
Comparison of phone content changes when performing analysis using
different approaches

* - Extra sync add-ons installation may be needed to extract some additional information (e.g. MMS)
** - Agent does not generate any log files

Unlike Agent, SyncML server is not a forensically designed app and is out of full
control from examiner. In addition - it makes more data modifications than Agent.
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Summary
Smartphones is a considerable part of mobile device market
FutureSource Consulting forecasts that, between 2008 and 2013, annual sales of
smartphones will rise by 95% to over 300 million. It will be around 37% of all new mobile
phones, up from 13% in 2008.
Smartphones store much more important forensic information than plain cell
phones
Being a multiple-in-one device and having OS with open API smartphones are turning into
small PCs with big memory sizes, wide set of preinstalled applications and huge number of
available 3rd party applications.
Standard extraction methods are less effective for smartphones
All logical protocols were developed for sync purposes, thus they can only extract a top of
the iceberg. Physical analysis of gigabyte hex dumps takes a lot of time.
Agent application usage is the golden mean
The Agent application approach, introduced by Oxygen Software in 2002, almost achieves
the completeness of data extracted by physical methods. At the same time it works via
standard cables and adaptors and allows to present the extracted data in readable and
user-friendly format that is more peculiar to logical analysis.
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Interested in more details?
Oxygen Forensic Suite 2010

www.oxygen-forensic.com
Oxygen Forensics for iPhone
www.iphone-forensics.com
+44 (0) 20 8133 8450 (UK)
+1 877 9-OXYGEN (USA)

£499
£899

Standard

Oxygen Forensic Suite and Oxygen Forensic Suite 2010 a the
trademarks of Oxygen Software.
Oxygen Software LLC was founded in year 2000 and since that
time our business is a PC-to-mobile communication.

Professional
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