PDA

View Full Version : Researchers bypass Android encryption by exposing phones to freezing temperatures



JohnQPublic
10th March 2013, 08:49 PM
Researchers bypass Android encryption by exposing phones to freezing temperatures (http://appleinsider.com/articles/13/03/07/researchers-bypass-android-encryption-by-exposing-phones-to-freezing-temperatures)
"...Google's encryption method, which has been a part of Android since the "Ice Cream Sandwich" release, was bypassed by exposing a smartphone to freezing temperatures for an hour, according to (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-21697704) the BBC. After that time period, researchers were able to access previously encrypted contacts, browsing histories, and photos..."

"...Freezing the phone reportedly aids in the hacking of Android because the low temperatures cause data to fade from internal chips more slowly. Researchers used this phenomenon to obtain encryption keys and unscramble the phone's encrypted data..."

Ares
10th March 2013, 09:12 PM
That's nothing new, and has been known for quite some time.

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/security/cryogenically-frozen-ram-bypasses-all-disk-encryption-methods/900

It was only a matter of time before someone said, hey lets freeze it and see if we can extract the keys from memory.