Mobile phones, tablets, and smartphones have become a vital source of current society. It works for both personal and professional lives, simplifying a lot of things. Currently, there are many scenarios where smartphones are becoming a crucial part of professional operations.
In such circumstances, people often use professional smartphones for personal use. Such events lead to a higher risk of exposing delicate information to unauthorized individuals. Further, this raises the need to investigate unethical practices.
Most devices vary in terms of design, functionality, and technology incorporated. This leaves a notable impact on the investigation process and type. These factors raise the need for cell phone forensics, including – the study of concepts, approaches, and other traditional methods.
Examiners who are supposed to investigate mobile devices for data breach issues require understanding the nitty-gritty of complete acquisition processes and their complexities. All such factors are important to consider when handling a data analysis process. It all begins with extracting the data from a mobile device and then evaluating each information type. The amount of data recovered, security features intact, and delicacy of data determine how the examiner will access the data.
Information types commonly stored on cell phones include –
Multimedia files – A massive storage covers different multimedia files encompassing videos, pictures, music files, and much more. Such file formats can be seen as evidence leading to a thorough investigation. A professional examiner can take out some vital details from such sources simplifying the analysis and bringing accurate results in a minimal time epoch.
Application-related data – The communication data consists of information like – chat data, call logs, messages, social media account details, emails, and much more. The application data is referred to the details stored in a third-party website or online platform. This type of information is extracted using a digital platform like DropBox, Facebook, or any other mobile application. The sole purpose of this data type is to commence communication. Here, an examiner may use Cell Phone Forensics Software to extract and decode the delicate information extracted. Such delicate processes may include identifying people associated with it.
Malware practices – Like computer systems, mobile phones act vulnerable to different malware attacks. As a result, the forensic tools may serve as a source of preserving information while dealing with the malware attack leading to the data breach. The analysis done can unravel more about the type of malware and monitor further communications done.
Backup creation – The portable nature of mobile phones is one of the leading causes behind the increased risk of phones being stolen and misused. People using different backup systems and plans reduce the risk of a data breach, but that does not secure the data completely. Such backup systems work as a host to a wealth of data.
Conclusion
Since cell phones have become the be-all and end-all of the current times, it has become essential to check the data breach and leakage concerns. Most smartphones and other high-tech devices have become the primary target of cyberattacks encouraging criminal activities. This leads to cell phone forensics.
