4 ms·

Curious, how do they make copies of everything? Do they just film the phone as they're scrolling it?

by dmos62 7mo ago

nerdsniper 7mo ago
They connect it to a little box that hacks into the phone and downloads everything. Search for "Cellebrite Universal Forensic Extraction Device (UFED)" or "Grayshift GrayKey". The border agent doesn't have to know anything about phones/computers, it's just "plug in, press button". With modern phones, they really only work if you unlock your phone before handing it to them, and they'll make you do that. If you don't unlock the phone and let them walk off with it for awhile, they'll refuse you entry into the USA and send you back. US citizens are, of course, allowed in even if they refuse, but they will confiscate a citizen's phone in exchange for a custody receipt (Form 6051-D) and they are supposed to return it to the US citizen after they break into the phone / crack the encryption. If they can't crack it, they can choose to never return the phone to the US citizen. And it can be a very stressful situation in which citizens may not know what their rights are in the moment (or can't afford to replace their phone or lose access to it because how would you even get an Uber from the airport or coordinate a pickup if you don't have a phone). You can choose to bring burner phones or make sure your phone is freshly factory reset, but if you're a non-citizen that can also be a reason to be refused entry, and if you are a citizen that can "get you on a list", leading to getting "SSSS" stamped on every boarding pass for every flight you take, in every country in the world, for the next many years. If your boarding pass gets "SSSS" written on it, you will get pulled aside by security and all your bags get individually hand-searched prior to every single flight (even transfers/connections/layovers). Non-citizens are also sometimes asked for a list of your social media accounts and the passwords to their social media accounts. Refusing to provide your passwords can be used as a reason to refuse entry to the USA. If the USA believes you have a social media account that you failed to tell them about, that can also be a reason to refuse entry. Also, as of recently, visitors from 38 countries have to post a ~$10,000 bond just to be allowed into the USA. https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/2023-09/Test_Results_for_Mobile_Device_Acquisition_Tool_Cellebrite.pdf https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/2023-09/Test_Results... https://cellebrite.com/en/products/ufed/ https://cellebrite.com/en/products/ufed/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grayshift https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grayshift
- mothballed 7mo ago
  I tried entering without a phone or anything other than the clothes I was wearing so they didn't have anything to search. So instead they got a warrant for a cavity search (I'm still chased by debt collectors for this, as I was brought by prisoner van to a private hospital) , because they can't stand to not have anything to look at. They will fuck with you ruthlessly if there isn't something for them to scrutinize upon entry.
- jacquesm 7mo ago
  This post alone should be a reason for tourism to the USA to drop to ~0%. I've visited a lot of countries in my life but I've never been treated as rudely as on the US border.
- gzread 7mo ago
  Sounds like every citizen should come through with a burner phone until ICE doesn't have time to search everyone's bags.
meeb 7mo ago
They plug the phone into a computer and use software to literally clone it, so everything on the phone. All logs, emails, messages, photos, contacts, deleted files if they’re recoverable, passwords, everything.
- CalRobert 7mo ago
  Would an iphone in lockdown mode have any resistance to this?
  - heavyset_go 7mo ago
    I don't think we have access to all of the functionality of the devices, and all of the devices themselves, that are sold to governments.
  - nerdsniper 7mo ago
    The latest iPhone model in lockdown mode would be super resistant. Lockdown mode is specifically engineered to protect against Cellebrite / Pegasus-level threats. However, if you’re a noncitizen you might be refused entry, and if you are a citizen you might never see that phone again. The phone will be stored for years until/if Cellebrite finds a vulnerability in that iPhone model, and then it will be searched. Also the government might target your future phones for Pegasus-style remote attacks, so if you present your phone to CBP in lockdown mode, you may want to leave lockdown mode enabled forever. Modern iPhones are very, very hard (impossible) to crack today if they’re locked down properly: strong password, biometrics disabled, and/or lockdown mode.
    - srean 7mo ago
      Very interesting. Are there any technical hindrances that prevent Android being the same ?
      - Mkengin 7mo ago
        I don't think so, I use GrapheneOS and I think I can't even use the USB-C port for anything other than charging (which should be configurable).
heavyset_go 7mo ago
Do a search for Cellebrite
gzread 7mo ago
They use a specialized device like Cellebrite, there's a whole industry for this

Curious, how do they make copies of everything? Do they just film the phone as they're scrolling it?

by dmos62 7mo ago

Curious, how do they make copies of everything? Do they just film the phone as they're scrolling it?

They connect it to a little box that hacks into the phone and downloads everything. Search for "Cellebrite Universal Forensic Extraction Device (UFED)" or "Grayshift GrayKey". The border agent doesn't have to know anything about phones/computers, it's just "plug in, press button". With modern phones, they really only work if you unlock your phone before handing it to them, and they'll make you do that. If you don't unlock the phone and let them walk off with it for awhile, they'll refuse you entry into the USA and send you back. US citizens are, of course, allowed in even if they refuse, but they will confiscate a citizen's phone in exchange for a custody receipt (Form 6051-D) and they are supposed to return it to the US citizen after they break into the phone / crack the encryption. If they can't crack it, they can choose to never return the phone to the US citizen. And it can be a very stressful situation in which citizens may not know what their rights are in the moment (or can't afford to replace their phone or lose access to it because how would you even get an Uber from the airport or coordinate a pickup if you don't have a phone). You can choose to bring burner phones or make sure your phone is freshly factory reset, but if you're a non-citizen that can also be a reason to be refused entry, and if you are a citizen that can "get you on a list", leading to getting "SSSS" stamped on every boarding pass for every flight you take, in every country in the world, for the next many years. If your boarding pass gets "SSSS" written on it, you will get pulled aside by security and all your bags get individually hand-searched prior to every single flight (even transfers/connections/layovers). Non-citizens are also sometimes asked for a list of your social media accounts and the passwords to their social media accounts. Refusing to provide your passwords can be used as a reason to refuse entry to the USA. If the USA believes you have a social media account that you failed to tell them about, that can also be a reason to refuse entry. Also, as of recently, visitors from 38 countries have to post a ~$10,000 bond just to be allowed into the USA. https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/2023-09/Test_Results_for_Mobile_Device_Acquisition_Tool_Cellebrite.pdf https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/2023-09/Test_Results... https://cellebrite.com/en/products/ufed/ https://cellebrite.com/en/products/ufed/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grayshift https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grayshift

mothballed 7mo ago
I tried entering without a phone or anything other than the clothes I was wearing so they didn't have anything to search. So instead they got a warrant for a cavity search (I'm still chased by debt collectors for this, as I was brought by prisoner van to a private hospital) , because they can't stand to not have anything to look at. They will fuck with you ruthlessly if there isn't something for them to scrutinize upon entry.
jacquesm 7mo ago
This post alone should be a reason for tourism to the USA to drop to ~0%. I've visited a lot of countries in my life but I've never been treated as rudely as on the US border.
gzread 7mo ago
Sounds like every citizen should come through with a burner phone until ICE doesn't have time to search everyone's bags.

meeb 7mo ago

They plug the phone into a computer and use software to literally clone it, so everything on the phone. All logs, emails, messages, photos, contacts, deleted files if they’re recoverable, passwords, everything.

CalRobert 7mo ago
Would an iphone in lockdown mode have any resistance to this?
- heavyset_go 7mo ago
  I don't think we have access to all of the functionality of the devices, and all of the devices themselves, that are sold to governments.
- nerdsniper 7mo ago
  The latest iPhone model in lockdown mode would be super resistant. Lockdown mode is specifically engineered to protect against Cellebrite / Pegasus-level threats. However, if you’re a noncitizen you might be refused entry, and if you are a citizen you might never see that phone again. The phone will be stored for years until/if Cellebrite finds a vulnerability in that iPhone model, and then it will be searched. Also the government might target your future phones for Pegasus-style remote attacks, so if you present your phone to CBP in lockdown mode, you may want to leave lockdown mode enabled forever. Modern iPhones are very, very hard (impossible) to crack today if they’re locked down properly: strong password, biometrics disabled, and/or lockdown mode.
  - srean 7mo ago
    Very interesting. Are there any technical hindrances that prevent Android being the same ?
    - Mkengin 7mo ago
      I don't think so, I use GrapheneOS and I think I can't even use the USB-C port for anything other than charging (which should be configurable).

heavyset_go 7mo ago

Do a search for Cellebrite

gzread 7mo ago

They use a specialized device like Cellebrite, there's a whole industry for this