The Feds Still Can't Get Into Eric Adams' Phone (theverge.com)
- Reference: 0175181007
- News link: https://apple.slashdot.org/story/24/10/02/2124209/the-feds-still-cant-get-into-eric-adams-phone
- Source link: https://www.theverge.com/2024/10/2/24260626/fbi-eric-adams-locked-phone-forgotten-changed-password
> New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who was [1]indicted last week on charges including fraud, bribery, and soliciting donations from foreign nationals, told federal investigators he [2]forgot his phone password before handing it over, according to charging documents. That was almost a year ago, and investigators [3]still can't get into the phone , prosecutors said Wednesday.
>
> During a federal court hearing, prosecutor Hagan Scotten said the FBI's inability to get into Adams' phone is a "significant wild card," according to a report from the [4]New York Post . The FBI issued a search warrant for Adams' devices in November 2023. Adams initially handed over two phones but didn't have his personal device on him. The indictment does not mention what type of device Adams uses. When Adams turned in his personal cellphone the following day, charging documents say, he said he had changed the password a day prior -- after learning about the investigation -- and couldn't remember it. Adams told investigators he changed the password "to prevent members of his staff from inadvertently or intentionally deleting the contents of his phone," the indictment alleges.
The FBI just needs the right tools. When investigators failed to break into the Trump rally shooter's phone in July, they sent the device to the FBI lab in Quantico, Virginia, where agents used an [5]unreleased tool from the Israeli company Cellebrite to [6]crack it in less than an hour .
[1] https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/25182562-usa-v-eric-adams-indictment?responsive=1&title=1
[2] https://arstechnica.com/security/2024/09/indicted-nyc-mayor-to-fbi-i-uh-forgot-my-phones-passcode/
[3] https://www.theverge.com/2024/10/2/24260626/fbi-eric-adams-locked-phone-forgotten-changed-password
[4] https://nypost.com/2024/10/02/us-news/feds-still-cant-break-into-adams-locked-phone-nearly-a-year-after-seizing-it-significant-wild-card-in-corruption-case/
[5] https://it.slashdot.org/story/24/07/19/0221209/fbi-used-new-cellebrite-software-to-crack-trump-shooters-phone?sdsrc=rel
[6] https://news.slashdot.org/story/24/07/15/1644239/fbi-has-gained-access-to-the-trump-rally-shooters-phone-update
Re: (Score:2)
Law enforcement will naturally get a warrant for something as part of a probable cause investigation into crimes and execute that warrant to help gather additional evidence before actually filing charges. If they couldn't get into his phone it does partially explain why it took so long for an indictment to come down as they would have needed to build their case with other evidence that took time to acquire as opposed to having an easier time with anything recovered from his phone. They may have only gotten
Re: (Score:1)
Not a year ago, it was november 2023 [1]https://www.foxnews.com/politi... [foxnews.com]
[1] https://www.foxnews.com/politics/nyc-mayor-eric-adams-electronic-devices-seized-fbi-campaign-investigation-report
Re Snow (Score:2)
Flake.
Re: (Score:3)
> If he was just inducted last week, someone needs to explain the entire how, what, and why of collecting his magically unhackable phone a YEAR ago.
The investigation has been going on for a long time: they started seizing evidence (his three phones) in November 2023. The Grand Jury has only last week got around to indicting him, based on the evidence. (But no evidence from the phone, which is still locked.)
Surprising (Score:2)
They would probably have better results seeing if any services he signed up for had a data leak exposing a password hash. Most people are awful at following good security practices and having multiple passwords. Even a strong password can be cracked with brute force effort and that can get around any enhanced security on the device that hinders efforts to access it. The FBI could always try to get warrants to require some company provide them with a password hash if they knew which services Adams used.
I
Re: (Score:2)
> It's not any secret what kind of magical phone he had.
> You can pre-order your iPhone right now, if you don't already have one. It's just a phone.
Re: (Score:2)
iPhones aren't magically immune to cracking efforts and there have been plenty of stories over the years of hackers that managed to defeat whatever security Apple put in place. If it's a new iPhone it might be a while before a vulnerability is found, or one already exists but the people who have it aren't going to disclose it for the sake of prosecuting a corrupt mayor when it can be used to fry juicier fish.
My iPhone is several generations old and I wouldn't be surprised if it could have the security cr
Re: (Score:2)
He changed the password a day before handing it over to the Feds and after learning about the investigation. If I had to guess, I'd say he just randomly typed as many characters as allowed.
Re: (Score:2)
Wouldn't it ask for a confirmation of the new password before changing it just to prevent a typo from locking a person out? He could have certainly still effectively done that, but I'm inclined to believe he's lying about something that cannot be proven he knowingly lied about without discovering the actual password he used and showing that he knew still knew it, which is practically impossible.
If he went to those efforts he would have wiped the device as well making any actual data recovery even more di
Re: (Score:2)
IDK - I guess I should have said it's probably not one of his "usual" passwords, assuming he has those, because he was never going to get it back from the Feds without unlocking it, and he sure as hell didn't want to do that!
Re: (Score:2)
I'm surprised he didn't "lose" the phone inside of a shredder or a furnace.
Re: Surprising (Score:1)
He changed the password and claims to have forgotten it because he's a criminal. Pretty damn clear here. He wasn't trying to be the upstanding moral citizen he's trying to come off as and protect the evidence. He's a criminal and not a very stupid one at that.
Upstanding (Score:2)
Didn't he do a press conference a few days ago saying he has absolutely nothing to hide? Except for what's on his phone I guess.
Re: (Score:2)
He didn't hide it! He changed his password, and then forgot what it was! Obviously, he was very concerned with security and made it a 63 digit alpha numeric, with at least 13 special characters, and naturally did not write it down because that's bad password hygiene.
Re: (Score:2)
> Everything Adam's accused of is just garden variety corruption typical of politicians, and a total nothingburger next to Pelosi's insider trading or Biden Inc:
> [1]https://www.politico.com/magaz... [politico.com]
That's hilarious. I know a guy who owns a building in Manhattan with his name on the front and famously stiffs everyone. [2]https://news.bloomberglaw.com/... [bloomberglaw.com]
[1] https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2019/08/02/joe-biden-investigation-hunter-brother-hedge-fund-money-2020-campaign-227407/
[2] https://news.bloomberglaw.com/bankruptcy-law/giuliani-says-trump-campaign-rnc-owe-him-2-million-in-fees
Re: (Score:2)
> They're trying to hype the case, which sounds highly political. This Adams guy is just doing what all relatively powerful politicians do. I'll believe the FBI is serious when they apply the same rules to all of them.
Even if you had full unobstructed power over the FBI, I seriously doubt you would discover another 400+ cases of phone confiscation along with a full year-long media coverup on that legal action against a politician, to validate your highly political theory.
If this sounds even mildly normal to you, then move the fuck out of Chicago.
Unreleased? (Score:3)
"they sent the device to the FBI lab in Quantico, Virginia, where agents used an unreleased tool from the Israeli company Cellebrite to crack it in less than an hour" -- If the FBI has the tool, then it isn't exactly unreleased, is it.
Re: (Score:1)
> "they sent the device to the FBI lab in Quantico, Virginia, where agents used an unreleased tool from the Israeli company Cellebrite to crack it in less than an hour" -- If the FBI has the tool, then it isn't exactly unreleased, is it.
Uh, more importantly, show me how there isn’t blatant bias going on here. We’ve seen Eric Adams speak. He couldn’t even play a hacker on public access TV, much less one in real life to thwart the FBI cybercrime division for a year. You’re telling me HIS phone is somehow magically unhackable, and that has nothing to do with politics? Bullshit.
I wonder what the ratio of cracked vs. “uncrackable” phones are at the FBI, with that ratio being defined by a political party i
Don't be coy (Score:2)
It's an iPhone or on an outside chance a Pixel. Samsung doesn't prioritize security and everyone else doesn't even thinking about it.
Of course they can (Score:2)
But they have more than enough evidence and they don't need the phone. The cops don't use all of their tools unless they need them because it lets everyone know what tools they have
Re: (Score:1)
> The cops don't use all of their tools unless they need them because it lets everyone know what tools they have
Amazing how all those “secret” tools either come out “in less than an hour”, or don’t ever come out at all..depending on who is being investigated.
It’s almost as if there’s no secret to hide here at all. Almost as if an abusive Government has zero reason to hide any illegal or unconstitutional act from anyone. Because the fuck your gonna do about it anyway.
Of course they can.
up-up-down-down-left-right-left-right-B-A? (Score:2)
Have they tried the ultimate code?
Re: (Score:2)
Or "TheFBIareabunchofjerks"
Password retrieval (Score:3)
I'm sure that "forgotten" password can be easily retrieved [1]https://xkcd.com/538/ [xkcd.com] but in the US, there are laws against using this particular recovery method.
[1] https://xkcd.com/538/
Cop to cop (Score:1)
They don't want to rat their brother out