Forensic Blogs

An aggregator for digital forensics blogs

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Wearable Forensics Update

Forensic Analysis of Wearable Technology

If you haven’t already read the Wearables Team’s first blog, read it here. The team is researching the capabilities and evidence left from wearable technology, in particular four devices: the Samsung Galaxy Watch, the Fitbit Versa, the Garmin Fenix 5, and the Apple Watch Series 4.

Datagen

When the team finished their research, they moved on to data generation. The wearables team began by testing what they could at the lab here at the LCDI. They tested a wide range of capabilities such as: attempting to download applications to the watches, performing a stress test, taking a screenshot, and completing breathing tests. After their in house data generation, one team member took the Samsung Galaxy Watch and the Fitbit Versa home for a full day of datagen. The test subject recorded walking around Burlington, doing a swim workout, doing yoga, and sleeping. This gave the team plenty of data to use for their project.

…and Databases.

After the data generation, the team got to work on acquiring and imaging the phones. They specifically targeted the associated data with the health and watch applications for each device. The data the team found was mostly stored in SQL databases, a common format for mobile devices to keep data in. Within these databases, the team discovered many interesting artifacts that could be applied in forensic investigations. For instance, one of the artifacts the Wearables team found was device data for the Galaxy Watch. The database shows some key device information such as the name, model, and what appears to be a unique MAC (Media Access Control) address for the bluetooth adapter. Investigators could use this to prove the connection between a user’s phone and their Galaxy Watch.

The rest of the team’s artifact findings will be featured in our report at the end of our project.

Where to Next?

The Wearables Team is proud to share a small piece of their research! In the coming weeks, the team plans to perform another round of data generation on the Galaxy Watch and Fitbit Versa. This time, they plan on utilizing the NFC (Near-field communication) payment and messaging capabilities of these devices. Though the Galaxy Watch and Fitbit Versa portion of their research is concluding, the team is excited to continue their research with the Garmin Fenix 5 and Apple Watch Series 4. Be sure to check back in for more blog posts on their progress!

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Elcomsoft Tool Evaluation Blog 2

First evaluations!

Our Elcomsoft Tool Evaluation team started out the next sprint by setting off to evaluate the tools relating to phones, computers, and office products. To catch up on the beginning of our process, read our first blog post here. The new tools we evaluated included Advanced Office Password Recovery, Advanced WordPerfect Office Password Recovery, Elcomsoft Phone Viewer, Elcomsoft eXplorer for WhatsApp, and Elcomsoft Password Digger.

We used the following scoring system to evaluate the tools:

1- Beginner: user can navigate the program without any prior knowledge

3- Novice: user requires basic knowledge of the program and how it works

5- Intermediate: user needs some previous experience working with the program

8- Advanced: user must have a lot of experience working with the program

13- Superior: user must be an expert on the program and capable of  teaching others how to use it

Advanced Office Password Recovery

Advanced Office Password Recovery proved to be an extremely useful tool. The program opens with an interface that is simple and easy to understand. This interface includes a log window so the user can see what is processing as they are using the tool. There’s also a help tab with an instruction manual that’s found right inside the program for new users. Another advantage is that it accepts different document file types so the user doesn’t have to worry about any conversions.

The interface of Advanced Office Password Recovery

When the user wants to start an attack, they will have many different options ranging from a bruteforce attack to combination and hybrid attacks (these can all be read about in the manual). This gives the user many different options depending on the type of encryption they are dealing with. When the user selects the type of attack they want, a window will pop-up allowing them to enter specifications for the encryption that can allow the tool to work faster, e.g. password size, character parameters.

AOPR takes a good amount of time to decipher the password based on size and the type of attack. As the process is running, the tool will let the user know the passwords that are being tried and how many passwords are being tried per second. This is nice for the user so they can see how efficient the program is working and make sure they entered the right parameters so the tool can find the right password. In order to test the tool’s capabilities, we tested a range of different passwords that varied in complexity from six characters with only English characters, twelve characters that included numbers, and eighteen characters that included numbers and symbols.

Overall, this tool earns a 3 because only limited experience required in order to operate most of the processes. The part that requires the most knowledge is deciding which attack to use for a specific password. Although the password apprehension process might take a long time, it is functional and can recover any password, no matter the complexity.

Elcomsoft Phone Viewer

After using the Elcomsoft Phone Viewer, we would rate it a score of 3, or novice. The program gives multiple options to access backup information from an iPhone, BlackBerry, and Microsoft account data. The need for basic understanding comes in when trying to figure out which backup works best with the tool. The process we are using for the tool is an iTunes backup. We downloaded iTunes onto the desktop and synced the phone to the computer. Once complete, we clicked on iTunes backup and chose the iPhone 8 device. Then we allowed access to all information from the iPhone. After typing in the encrypted passcode, it took only twenty-seven seconds to download the iTunes backup and get access to the main interface of the tool. The time can vary due to the size of the backup.

The interface of Elcomsoft Phone Viewer

The main interface is very user-friendly. With only some knowledge on these devices, our team had an easy time evaluating this tool. It shows the iPhone user, the type of phone, iOS version, Serial Number, GUID, IMEI, Unique Identifier, and last backup date. The Elcomsoft Phone Viewer gives us access to the applications, calendar, calls, contacts, locations, media, messages, notes, notifications, Wallet, Web and Wi-Fi. Within each category, it goes into depth with information that can be filtered to find more exact information. For example, in applications, the user can search for a specific app without looking through the list. This allows the tool to be efficient in finding the information the user wants.  This tool also has a help option that explains the tool in great detail that is understandable for anyone with limited knowledge.

Advanced WordPerfect Office Password Recovery

Advanced WordPerfect Office Password Recovery is an extremely simple yet useful tool. When first opened, the tool presents an interface with only four options that include: open file, help contents, about, and quit. For convenience, there is an instruction manual under the help contents section if the user needs. In order to recover a password, all the user has to do is open a WordPerfect file and the tool will do the rest. There were multiple documents tested with passwords varying in complexity and the tool was still able to decipher the passwords in a matter of seconds. The complexity of the passwords included six characters with only English characters, twelve characters that included numbers, and eighteen characters that included numbers and symbols.

The interface of Advanced WordPerfect Office Password Recovery

Not only does the tool output the password of the document but it also shows the equivalent in hexadecimal which is a nice addition. The status window only shows what is absolutely necessary and doesn’t overstimulate the user with too many statistics. Our only objection with the program is that it only accepts WordPerfect files and it doesn’t convert other documents for the user. However, his really isn’t an issue with the tool as its purpose is only to decipher WordPerfect files.

We would rank this tool a 1. The tool does everything as promised and is extremely simple and user-friendly. It works very fast and efficiently and can be navigated without any knowledge of the tool or password recovery in general.

Elcomsoft eXplorer for WhatsApp

After using the Elcomsoft eXplorer for WhatsApp, we would rank this tool a 3, or novice. The tool gives multiple ways to access the WhatsApp account for Apple and Android users. Depending on the device, the user needs some knowledge of the device and the best way to download the accounts. For the Elcomsoft eXplorer for WhatsApp, we used the iTunes backup. We have found this to be the most useful way to access the information for the tools involving Apple. In the tool, we clicked on the Apple icon and pressed the option to load the iTunes/iCloud backup. We clicked on the iPhone 8 device and entered the password for the encrypted backup. It took about thirty-two seconds to download, but it can vary due to the size of the download.

The interface of Elcomsoft eXplorer for WhatsApp

The main interface is very user-friendly and the main purpose of the tool is easily conveyed. Our team found our way around the tool with the basic knowledge we learned from the videos on Elcomsoft’s website. The built-in viewer gives great information that is easy to follow. It shows the account’s phone number and when the account was created. It also includes information about the device, product type, full user name, client version, and the size of the information used on the account. The tool gives access to WhatsApp calls, contacts, media, and messages and we could easily search for information with the filtering application. If there are questions, there is a help button with clear instructions that are easy to follow.

Advanced Office Password Breaker

We found Advanced Office Password Breaker to be an efficient and useful tool would recommend it to certain users. Upon opening the tool, the user will be greeted with a simplistic design. This includes a way to select the encrypted file the user wishes to crack, an area allowing the user to choose where the info about the process can be saved after it is completed, and a box that tells the user the remaining time left. In order to be able to understand the entirety of the interface as well as all the features of the application, a user will have to read through the available manual l and spend some time getting to know it  better.

The interface of Advanced Office Password Breaker

Documents with different passwords were tested in this tool. These passwords ranged in complexity from six lowercase characters all the way to eighteen characters with uppercase characters, numbers, and symbols. The tool was able to break into all the documents regardless of the password. It should be noted that the longer and more complex the password, the longer the tests took. On the upside of this, the program does notify the user the estimated time remaining which is a nice feature.

After this program had been put through its tests, we decided to give it a score of 5. The tool is very useful and by all means accomplishes all the features it promises in the description. However, it does require a fair amount of experience to use to its full capabilities. This can be achieved by reading through the manual or by trial and error testing in the program. Whatever the case, this program will need a user who knows  what they are doing to operate the tool as well as understand everything on the interface.

Elcomsoft Password Digger

After using the Elcomsoft Password Digger, we would rate this a 3, or novice. Our team had a basic understanding of the tool and learned more as we used it. In order to extract the passwords from Mac OS X, we had to gain access to the user keychain file of the computer. In order to test this tool, we had access to a Mac computer and download the keychain file onto a USB. Along with access to the file, we needed the password to the computer. Next, we extracted the user keychain file. It had twenty user keychains, no decryption results, and processed twenty passcodes. We exported the passwords to an XML file. Our team decided where we would save the document and then pressed new task. The XMl file opened in Internet Explorer and accessed the passwords.

Keychain extraction of the encrypted XML file with important information blocked off

The Password Digger’s main interface is very straight forward. The tool meets all the requirements and provides information on how to use the tool if needed. Elcomsoft Password Digger was able to extract, decrypt, and export the content of the keychains. The file created can be used to build a custom dictionary attack with the user’s real passwords to improve password recovery attacks. Also, the tool was able to export full keychain data into an encrypted XML file.

Elcomsoft Phone Breaker

One obstacle that our team came across was using the Elcomsoft Phone Breaker. Unfortunately, we could not rate this tool since we could not evaluate its use. The issue we ran into was the iCloud backups had been temporarily disabled. The tool is able to sign in to the iCloud account, but cannot download the information into the tool. Elcomsoft explains that:

“Apple is instantly improving access and download protocols for backups. Our research and develop teams do their best to fix this problem as soon as possible. Please ensure that you have the latest version of Elcomsoft Phone Breaker and feel free to contact our support team if you have any questions.”

The interface of Elcomsoft Phone Breaker

With the access that we do have to the tool, the interface is easy to understand. There are two tabs that show up; the Password Recovery Wizard and Tools. The tool is designed to break passwords and decrypt iOS backups, decrypt iCloud Keychain and Messages with media files and documents from iCloud, obtain synchronized data from Apple and Microsoft accounts, and download iCloud backups and synced data with or without Apple ID passwords. Testing the iCloud backup is where our issue occurred. When working properly, this tool is great when used with Elcomsoft’s other password recovery tools.  

Conclusion

Our team learned a lot about Elcomsoft’s tools from our evaluation. Each tool has its own unique functions that can help users in many ways. So far, these tools are user-friendly and meet the requirements set forth by Elcomsoft. Our team had a basic understanding of how to use these tools, which made evaluating them much easier. For the future, our team will continue to evaluate the Advanced Archive Password Recovery, Advanced PDF Password Recovery, Distributed Password Recovery, Elcomsoft Cloud eXplorer, Elcomsoft Internet Password Breaker, Proactive System Password Recovery, and Elcomsoft System Recovery. We will continue to produce comprehensive results for the LCDI and Elcomsoft.

 

Be sure to check us out on Twitter @ChampForensics, Instagram @ChampForensics, and Facebook @ChamplainLCDI to keep up to date with our evaluations!

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Data Recovery – Blog 1

The Science of Data Recovery

Do you think your deleted data is truly gone? Every day, people around the world share, save, or move critically important data, like credit card numbers, medical checks, and passwords. It wouldn’t be unreasonable to think that the delete function erases files forever, but the truth is that those files could still exist.

In an age where computing power doubles every two years, we replace hardware quickly. The data from old devices doesn’t disappear from storage, even if we delete it. Criminals could use the photos, files, and even names of the previous owners left on these devices to exploit someone’s funds or position of trust. Our goal at the LCDI this semester is to see if we can find personally identifiable information left behind on old hard drives that were “wiped” using free and available programs. 

What is Personally Identifiable Information?

A good place to start when talking about this subject is the basics: What is PII? Personally Identifiable Information is data that could allow others to identify you. This information is critical, as often even small pieces of data fall into the wrong hands. The data allows people to impersonate you or gain access to your identity. Social Security numbers, credit card numbers, and a driver’s license are all common examples. This even extends to smaller pieces of data, like birth location, place of work, and your username on social media.

Though this information may seem random, password recovery for websites uses this information. They can obtain the data in many ways. Websites asking for your information is the most common, but phone calls or lost wallets have long been exploited. Digital data is akin to a wallet, full of personal information and liable to theft. With online shopping being the zeitgeist of the consumer world, this has never been more of a concern than now.

How is data deleted?

We started our project by researching what’s established, including ways people previously deleted data and how it’s done now. There are no universal data deletion instructions or laws for non-government officials to follow, but rather a list of previous and current methods. We looked at government bureaus for practical data deletion standards. The National Institute of Standards and Technology’s SP 800-88 Media Erasure Guideline and the Department of Defense 5220.22-M ECE are two such examples. The documents differ on acceptable and appropriate methods for different levels of data security. The DoD standard states that the only way to destroy data forever is to destroy the device itself. The NIST protocol states only one digital wipe is necessary for data destruction.

Digital wiping or a “wipe” is the nonphysical option. This is the replacement of all data with a few of patterns, like random zeros and ones, or multiple replacements of random integers from zero to nine. The number of times this process occurs changes, but traditionally, it’s been between one and seven times. The reason behind the variation is the security of the information and the risk of recovery. The importance of the data could be trivial, like a grocery list from 5 years ago. On the other hand, it could be as severe as losing the PII of a secret agent in the field.

The digital wipe is less expensive, but also less secure due to the possibility of remaining data.  This is possible no matter how many wipes have occurred. Physically destroying a hard drive can be favorable because it prohibits the device from any future use, but it’s more expensive to replace the lost device.

Benefits of Physical Destruction

There are multiple ways to physically destroy a hard drive, but the goal is to damage or destroy the platter. The platter is a small metal disk in all hard drives where it writes and reads the data. The simplest and most available way is to destroy the hard drive physically, by hitting it with a hammer or large object. Another method is the magnetic degaussing. The process takes the iron oxide within the platter, a necessity for storing data, and uses it to remove the magnetic readings written on it.

The physical effects depend on the intensity of the magnetic field. Oersteds measure the amount of energy in the magnetic field, and the higher the oersteds, the more capable degaussing is at destroying data. However, not all magnetic marks can be easily removed. Hard drives’ resistance to the magnetic field is called coercivity, and the more intense the coercivity, the more oersteds needed to degauss. Shredding the hard drive or incinerating it are also viable methods. Machines capable of these methods are more suited for large scale businesses due to the high cost, but companies do provide these services.

Conclusion

Nothing’s scarier than discovering a lost wallet. That feeling is the reason our mission is so critical in our society. We integrate technology into work, recreation, and security, as well as our money and data. The point of our research is to identify if PII data is still left on hard drives after “wiping”.  Next week, we plan on investigating data recovery freeware and delivering our verdict on what it means for data disposal. 

 

Be sure to check us out on Twitter @ChampForensics, Instagram @ChampForensics, and Facebook @ChamplainLCDI to keep up to date with our progress!

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