3 ms·

Is $15k a weirdly low number for this, given the importance the FBI has attributed to it? Anyone with similar contracting experience who can comment?

superuser2 11y ago
Cellebrite's entire business is building these kinds of exploits into its shrink-wrap software sold to thousands of law enforcement agencies, including po-dunk municipalities that presumably can't afford federal government contracting rates. I'd guess that if they're quoting $15k, they're going to run the software they already have. They are not know to be effective against current iPhones, but they do advertise their ability to break all Androids and older iPhones via USB on their public website.
- Scoundreller 11y ago
  Is there a known vuln against all current Androids? Or would it be unpublished if currently true?
  - superuser2 11y ago
    A while ago there was Stagefright. Though I doubt the company's entire product line hinges on one bug; there is presumably a large catalog of exploits with varying effectiveness depending on the exact model and version of the target.
21 11y ago
Maybe this was the sum quoted by Cellebrite.
mtgx 11y ago
Well, from the FBI's perspective, they may already know the data on that work phone is worthless, but they just pretended it's not to get the precedent against Apple. From Cellebrite's perspective, they should've probably asked more like $1.5 million to solve "such a valuable case", as the FBI has made it to be in public (and if this is indeed that contract, which it may not be). Apple also helped there by talking about how much of a burden it would be to unlock it.
- fucking_tragedy 11y ago
  Truth is the community knows how much of a relative non-burden it is and the contract was probably bid upon.
- deelowe 11y ago
  As the other reply has alluded to, the low price is indicative of how trivial of a problem this was to solve. It's not a 1.5M dollar problem and the FBI could easily find someone willing to charge less.

superuser2 11y ago

Cellebrite's entire business is building these kinds of exploits into its shrink-wrap software sold to thousands of law enforcement agencies, including po-dunk municipalities that presumably can't afford federal government contracting rates. I'd guess that if they're quoting $15k, they're going to run the software they already have. They are not know to be effective against current iPhones, but they do advertise their ability to break all Androids and older iPhones via USB on their public website.

Scoundreller 11y ago
Is there a known vuln against all current Androids? Or would it be unpublished if currently true?
- superuser2 11y ago
  A while ago there was Stagefright. Though I doubt the company's entire product line hinges on one bug; there is presumably a large catalog of exploits with varying effectiveness depending on the exact model and version of the target.

21 11y ago

Maybe this was the sum quoted by Cellebrite.

mtgx 11y ago

Well, from the FBI's perspective, they may already know the data on that work phone is worthless, but they just pretended it's not to get the precedent against Apple. From Cellebrite's perspective, they should've probably asked more like $1.5 million to solve "such a valuable case", as the FBI has made it to be in public (and if this is indeed that contract, which it may not be). Apple also helped there by talking about how much of a burden it would be to unlock it.

fucking_tragedy 11y ago
Truth is the community knows how much of a relative non-burden it is and the contract was probably bid upon.
deelowe 11y ago
As the other reply has alluded to, the low price is indicative of how trivial of a problem this was to solve. It's not a 1.5M dollar problem and the FBI could easily find someone willing to charge less.