New tech to help cops crack smartphones

The tenders for the kit have been floated for the two devices,police said.

SD Mishra,Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (EOW),said,“These days,use of cell phones in committing a crime is very common. Often,investigating officers find themselves unable to break the codes of certain mobile phones or recover data lost from a phone. Once the kit comes in,investigation teams can carry it to the crime scene and examine phones,computers,etc.,without wasting any time. The tool kit will help crack passwords and retrieve data stored on the phone. Moreover,even deleted call records can be read using this tool.”

The mobile forensic tool kit,which is used by law enforcement agencies and intelligence wing of various countries,is a simple but expensive device,he said.

“The device has to be connected to a computer. All data,including those which have been deleted or are hidden using a password,can be easily accessed,” said a police officer.

“In the Arushi-Hemraj murder case,the Crime Branch officers had recovered the mobile phone of Arushi Talwar. However,it was not of much help to police because all data had been deleted. The tool kit will help us immensely in such instances,” the officer said.

He said tenders for another two forensic software,which were used by law enforcements agencies in the US and Australia,have already been floated.

Deputy Commissioner of Police(EOW) K K Vyas said,“The tools will be of immense help to us. We can go to the spot and get the mobile phone and the computers examined right away. Data extraction will be very helpful in solving a crime.”