NIST Study on Collection of Cell Phone Data - Paraben Electronic Evidence Examiner

Here's a follow-up to last night's tip on a DHS/NIST report on the collection of data from mobile devices using the Cellebrite tool. Last September, the same team published a study, Test Results for Binary Image (JTAG, Chip-Off) Decoding and Analysis Tool: Paraben’s Electronic Evidence Examiner – Device Seizure (E3:DS), which tested the Paraben tool's ability to collect data from HTC, Samsung, LG and ZTE Android cell phones.

Paraben was shown to have trouble collecting data for contacts from Samsung and HTC phones; data from calendars from HTC phones; and could not collect notes; stand-alone files; or GPS data from the HTC One Mini Chip-off at all using a Chip-Off analysis. Call log data and social media data were not always collected from HTC Desire S smartphones.

SMS messages and internet data were collected with the Paraben tool successfully on all of the phones tested using both the JTAG and Chip-Off approaches.