Develop Bugs

[Q] LUKS Full Disk Encryption

Has any one done any work on getting LUKS working on the Galaxy Nexus yet? I know ICS has encryption but it is not the same (It is file level; dm-crypt encryption and leaves room for data leaks).
For that reason does any know of a WhisperCore alternative?
Thanks!

ICS encryption is dm-crypt based whole partition encryption. See ht tp://source.android.com/tech/encryption/android_crypto_implementation.html for details.
Now it does seem to have lots of drawbacks, but i don't think luks would be much safer. Well, it seems they differ in the used encrypted key headers. Google could have got that insecure.
Just using the lockscreen password strikes me as a bad choice in googles solution.

textshell said:
ICS encryption is dm-crypt based whole partition encryption. See ht tp://source.android.com/tech/encryption/android_crypto_implementation.html for details.
Now it does seem to have lots of drawbacks, but i don't think luks would be much safer. Well, it seems they differ in the used encrypted key headers. Google could have got that insecure.
Just using the lockscreen password strikes me as a bad choice in googles solution.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can tell the whole OS is not encrypted since you can make emergency calls when at the preboot authentication screen.Only /data is encrypted and thus leaves room for data leakage. WhisperCore just managed it perfectly- just like LUKS on a computer. Preboot authentication, ENTIRE disk encrypted (minus /boot), and secondary lock screen (login) password that can be anything include "pattern".
Not to mention ICS is only AES-128 bit, I mean c'mon why not just use 256 bit like everyone else? It's cleared by FIPS for a reason.

x942 said:
You can tell the whole OS is not encrypted since you can make emergency calls when at the preboot authentication screen.Only /data is encrypted and thus leaves room for data leakage. WhisperCore just managed it perfectly- just like LUKS on a computer. Preboot authentication, ENTIRE disk encrypted (minus /boot), and secondary lock screen (login) password that can be anything include "pattern".
Not to mention ICS is only AES-128 bit, I mean c'mon why not just use 256 bit like everyone else? It's cleared by FIPS for a reason.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
changing the key length for encryption should be an easy thing when compiling from source. Not sure what's the performance impact and security gain.
Having different crypto passphrase and screen unlock code might be a good thing, but if i start caring about encryption of my phone i'd try to push the key into the smartcard inside every phone (SIM card) and just enter the smartcard pin. Depends on amount of paranoia wrt security of these cards though.
But i don't understand why you would like to encrypt /system with a stock ROM. Nothing gained there. /system is read only so it can't really leak data. And as the kernel in the boot partition is unencrypted and unauthenticated anyway the OS code is open for changes anyway.
Without special hardware help or keeping the boot media separate and very safe, encryption will always only work against simple thiefs. If your attacker can get the phone do something to it and return it without you getting suspicious you lost anyway. Assuming he can get it again once you booted and used the phone again.

textshell said:
changing the key length for encryption should be an easy thing when compiling from source. Not sure what's the performance impact and security gain.
Having different crypto passphrase and screen unlock code might be a good thing, but if i start caring about encryption of my phone i'd try to push the key into the smartcard inside every phone (SIM card) and just enter the smartcard pin. Depends on amount of paranoia wrt security of these cards though.
But i don't understand why you would like to encrypt /system with a stock ROM. Nothing gained there. /system is read only so it can't really leak data. And as the kernel in the boot partition is unencrypted and unauthenticated anyway the OS code is open for changes anyway.
Without special hardware help or keeping the boot media separate and very safe, encryption will always only work against simple thiefs. If your attacker can get the phone do something to it and return it without you getting suspicious you lost anyway. Assuming he can get it again once you booted and used the phone again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not true. You an relock the bootloader on the Nexus phones, this completely prevents evil maid attacks. Secondly if I ever lose my phone and "happen to get it back" the first thing I am doing is wiping it and selling it for another one.
If you have ever use encryption you would know that the less an attacker knows the better. Hence encrypting the entire system is better than only encrypting a partition.
I don't like how Google implements dm-crypt. It would be more secure if the entire device was encrypted as it would completely look like random data to an attacker.
Why would you only encrypt your home folder and not every thing BUT /boot?
I prefer the whispercore way of doing it. I poweroff and you can't access anything except the login screen.

x942 said:
Not true. You an relock the bootloader on the Nexus phones, this completely prevents evil maid attacks. Secondly if I ever lose my phone and "happen to get it back" the first thing I am doing is wiping it and selling it for another one.
Why would you only encrypt your home folder and not every thing BUT /boot?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think trusting the locked bootloader is a good idea. Look for e.g. "unbrickable mod" for an example how a lot of samsung phones can be forced to bypass the bootloader on the internal flash and forced to load arbitrary code from outside. So if somebody is willing to do an evil maid attack, they will likely do enough research to know these kinds of backdoors in your hardware platform. JTAG is another usual way. Or whatever the phone manufacturer uses to unbrick phones. I think it prudent to assume any sufficiently founded attacker will have unrestricted read/write access.
And why only encrypt real data? Speed gain for no measurable loss in security. At least from the google perspective. Google will rightfully assume customers are using official ROMs and the exact bit patterns of there are publicly available to everyone. So why waste cpu cycles to encrypt them. What could be useful would be integrity protection.
But while a fully integrity protected boot under the control of the enduser would be very nice (with a bootloader that's unlocked but needs a key or password) if only the manufacturer gets to authorise new software it's evil.

textshell said:
I don't think trusting the locked bootloader is a good idea. Look for e.g. "unbrickable mod" for an example how a lot of samsung phones can be forced to bypass the bootloader on the internal flash and forced to load arbitrary code from outside. So if somebody is willing to do an evil maid attack, they will likely do enough research to know these kinds of backdoors in your hardware platform. JTAG is another usual way. Or whatever the phone manufacturer uses to unbrick phones. I think it prudent to assume any sufficiently founded attacker will have unrestricted read/write access.
And why only encrypt real data? Speed gain for no measurable loss in security. At least from the google perspective. Google will rightfully assume customers are using official ROMs and the exact bit patterns of there are publicly available to everyone. So why waste cpu cycles to encrypt them. What could be useful would be integrity protection.
But while a fully integrity protected boot under the control of the enduser would be very nice (with a bootloader that's unlocked but needs a key or password) if only the manufacturer gets to authorise new software it's evil.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes but as I said any one that would put that effort in would have to get the phone from me (which I carry 24/7) and once I know I no longer have control of it I would (as I said) reset it and sell it. You are basically saying all Full Disk Encryption (including on computers) is useless because someone can modify the bootloader. I hate to say it (and this is not directed to any one in this thread) but only a true ignorant person would fall victim to a evil maid attack, It is common sense NOT to trust something that you lost control of.
My situation is different: I run a non-profit organization and my employees need to carry sensitive data with them. Why risk security with the built in dm-crypt when something like WhisperCore is much better? I don't won't an attacker knowing ANYTHING about the device.
ICS built in encryption is just as useful as Home folder encryption in Linux. Your data may be safe but an attacker can ascertain how much data is there. And in some case use this information to infer what data may be present on the device. This is why most people using encryption use FDE and not just home folder encryption. When you are done there should be absolutely no way for anyone to tell the encrypted partition from random data (wiped data).

No, i'm just saying the full partition encryption of /data is enough on galaxy nexus and that you can't protect from an evil maid attack except by drastic measures after you lost control of your phone.

Understandable but I respectfully disagree. I want FULL DISK Encryption not Partition encryption. Take a look here: http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/wiki/DM-Crypt_with_LUKS#Security_levels
Either way (even if it is secure enough) It's not going to get approved for me to use in a work environment (FIPS 140-2). This is why I need some like WhisperCore. We handle sensitive data at my company.

Can't unlock phone on boot

Hi all,
bit of an emergency here. I am running rooted Chroma rom, just went into twrp to backup my EPS, and upon reboot it is saying I need to enter my password. I have done this several times. Now, it keeps saying the password is incorrect, and after the 5th time, there is no option to reset it! Help please!! Don't feel like wiping my phone again...

greves1 said:
Hi all,
bit of an emergency here. I am running rooted Chroma rom, just went into twrp to backup my EPS, and upon reboot it is saying I need to enter my password. I have done this several times. Now, it keeps saying the password is incorrect, and after the 5th time, there is no option to reset it! Help please!! Don't feel like wiping my phone again...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can search that but might as wipe in the meantime. Get yourself a working phone.

bobby janow said:
You can search that but might as wipe in the meantime. Get yourself a working phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the reply. Going through the post-wipe setup now. Grrrr. It's just that I entered the password a bunch of times, and it always worked. Just on reboot from recovery it didnt. Now I'm afraid to go back into twrp...
Anyone know if this could be caused by some android security feature that doesnt like systemless root, xposed, etc.

greves1 said:
Hi all,
bit of an emergency here. I am running rooted Chroma rom, just went into twrp to backup my EPS, and upon reboot it is saying I need to enter my password. I have done this several times. Now, it keeps saying the password is incorrect, and after the 5th time, there is no option to reset it! Help please!! Don't feel like wiping my phone again...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I assume this is the same problem as the Nexus 6P. You need to disable the security before making a TWRP backup. The fix is:
After restoring the nandroid, boot into twrp and then delete /data/sytem/locksettings.db. If that doesn't fix it, delete the locksettings.db-shm and locksettings.db-wal in the same location. If that doesn't fix it either, delete gatekeeper.password.key and gatekeeper.pattern.key in the same location.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

KennyG123 said:
I assume this is the same problem as the Nexus 6P. You need to disable the security before making a TWRP backup. The fix is:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for this fix. I'll keep it in mind next time. My broader question is now about security in general, since there seems to be a way to remove security from our roms?? For example, if someone got ahold of your phone, couldnt they just follow these steps to get in? Is this just a side-effect of unlocking the phone that is unavoidable? If I'm missing something about how to maintain security in the unlocked/rooted environment, please let me know. I've looked around but I haven't found any great guides for best practices regarding nandroids/security, etc. Thanks all!

greves1 said:
Thanks for this fix. I'll keep it in mind next time. My broader question is now about security in general, since there seems to be a way to remove security from our roms?? For example, if someone got ahold of your phone, couldnt they just follow these steps to get in? Is this just a side-effect of unlocking the phone that is unavoidable? If I'm missing something about how to maintain security in the unlocked/rooted environment, please let me know. I've looked around but I haven't found any great guides for best practices regarding nandroids/security, etc. Thanks all!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Rooting is in itself the biggest security risk. This is why carriers are working with manufacturers to make many phones fully locked and unrootable. Our main security expert Jcase does not use a rooted phone. He recommends if you need to root, go ahead, make the changes you want, then quickly unroot. So sure, if someone stole your phone they could follow that procedure to get into it. They could also just force a fresh stock version on it to wipe everything. Security and locks are meant to keep out honest people and slow down the dishonest.

KennyG123 said:
Rooting is in itself the biggest security risk. This is why carriers are working with manufacturers to make many phones fully locked and unrootable. Our main security expert Jcase does not use a rooted phone. He recommends if you need to root, go ahead, make the changes you want, then quickly unroot. So sure, if someone stole your phone they could follow that procedure to get into it. They could also just force a fresh stock version on it to wipe everything. Security and locks are meant to keep out honest people and slow down the dishonest.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just so I'm clear, the only thing keeping a stock phone safe is that when its locked, it can't be unlocked/rooted because the option to allow oem unlocking/adb connections are not (or should not be) checked in the developer options, is that correct? From what you're saying, as long as those two boxes are checked, there is essentially nothing stopping someone from wiping out your password and getting into your device. I'd love to run unrooted, but would adaway still have an effect? I'm thinking that the definitions are already applied, so maybe it would work unrooted. But cf.lumen, which I love and can't find the same functionality anywhere else, seems to always "enable interactive shell" on boot. Would this work unrooted? But again, as long so you're doing all this stuff, you can't lock your bootloader again, can you? Or can you lock it on a stock rom with the kind of modifications I'm talking about. I read that locking bootloader while having a custom rom loaded can cause a brick, although I'm not quite sure why. Couldn't you just always get into fastboot to unlock it again?

greves1 said:
Just so I'm clear, the only thing keeping a stock phone safe is that when its locked, it can't be unlocked/rooted because the option to allow oem unlocking/adb connections are not (or should not be) checked in the developer options, is that correct? From what you're saying, as long as those two boxes are checked, there is essentially nothing stopping someone from wiping out your password and getting into your device. I'd love to run unrooted, but would adaway still have an effect? I'm thinking that the definitions are already applied, so maybe it would work unrooted. But cf.lumen, which I love and can't find the same functionality anywhere else, seems to always "enable interactive shell" on boot. Would this work unrooted? But again, as long so you're doing all this stuff, you can't lock your bootloader again, can you? Or can you lock it on a stock rom with the kind of modifications I'm talking about. I read that locking bootloader while having a custom rom loaded can cause a brick, although I'm not quite sure why. Couldn't you just always get into fastboot to unlock it again?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pfew...so many questions...there are always vulnerabilities out there that hackers can find..like Stagefright...but a rooted phone is the most vulnerable. So having a phone with a locked bootloader and unrooted is the best security...still not guaranteed against every possible thing. But it is the best...now what are you trying to protect? Your data...or someone being able to wipe and use the phone as their own? All you can do really is try to protect from a phone being hacked remotely...and a rooted phone is like leaving the safe door open. But if someone steals your phone, there are always nefarious ways to make it usable.

KennyG123 said:
Pfew...so many questions...there are always vulnerabilities out there that hackers can find..like Stagefright...but a rooted phone is the most vulnerable. So having a phone with a locked bootloader and unrooted is the best security...still not guaranteed against every possible thing. But it is the best...now what are you trying to protect? Your data...or someone being able to wipe and use the phone as their own? All you can do really is try to protect from a phone being hacked remotely...and a rooted phone is like leaving the safe door open. But if someone steals your phone, there are always nefarious ways to make it usable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, sorry for the wall of questions. I am just trying to wrap my head around some of these issues. At the end of the day, I don't really keep sensitive data on the phone, although it would not be good if a bad actor got into my gmail, for instance. I suppose I should migrate the last of my sensitive accounts to a secondary email, so no password resets could be initiated from a stolen phone. It's always a tradeoff between convenience and security I know. It's also a little worrysome that simply unlocking the phone activates it for androidpay. An unlocked phone stolen out of someone's hand is essentially the same as stealing all the credit cards in their wallet. It would be nice if android pay allowed an additional fingreprint/pin/password to make the transaction. Anyway, I'm now taking my own thread way off topic. Thanks for the insights though.

greves1 said:
Yeah, sorry for the wall of questions. I am just trying to wrap my head around some of these issues. At the end of the day, I don't really keep sensitive data on the phone, although it would not be good if a bad actor got into my gmail, for instance. I suppose I should migrate the last of my sensitive accounts to a secondary email, so no password resets could be initiated from a stolen phone. It's always a tradeoff between convenience and security I know. It's also a little worrysome that simply unlocking the phone activates it for androidpay. An unlocked phone stolen out of someone's hand is essentially the same as stealing all the credit cards in their wallet. It would be nice if android pay allowed an additional fingreprint/pin/password to make the transaction. Anyway, I'm now taking my own thread way off topic. Thanks for the insights though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For most phones that have fingerprint security Android Pay can be set up that way. I won't use it anyway because it would be crazy to hand a waiter your unlocked phone, or to have to follow him to the register. It would only be useful to me in the supermarket but I am carrying a credit card anyway. But that is one thing people forget, rooting a phone means removing the main security.

KennyG123 said:
For most phones that have fingerprint security Android Pay can be set up that way. I won't use it anyway because it would be crazy to hand a waiter your unlocked phone, or to have to follow him to the register. It would only be useful to me in the supermarket but I am carrying a credit card anyway. But that is one thing people forget, rooting a phone means removing the main security.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
N5X and android pay seems to tell me to just "unlock your phone" and hold it close to the reader. No need for an additional fingerprint. And no option to require this in settings...

greves1 said:
N5X and android pay seems to tell me to just "unlock your phone" and hold it close to the reader. No need for an additional fingerprint. And no option to require this in settings...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, that should get you to the authorization screen and then if you have fingerprint set up should ask you for the fingerprint to authorize. Android Pay also now works on phones without fingerprint sensors so that is why they provide those simple instructions. Final authorization instructions will appear on your screen.

KennyG123 said:
Yes, that should get you to the authorization screen and then if you have fingerprint set up should ask you for the fingerprint to authorize. Android Pay also now works on phones without fingerprint sensors so that is why they provide those simple instructions. Final authorization instructions will appear on your screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah, great to know. Thanks.

greves1 said:
Ah, great to know. Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately I can't test that theory since I am on a custom ROM and also Xposed. But everything I read says it should utilize the fingerprint if available.

KennyG123 said:
Unfortunately I can't test that theory since I am on a custom ROM and also Xposed. But everything I read says it should utilize the fingerprint if available.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Real word use shows that android pay does not ask for an additional fingerprint at the time of use. It's just as the instructions say, as long as your phone is unlocked at the time it is held up to the scanner, androidpay will work. I kind of wish they allowed for the additional security of an at-scan fingerprint read, but oh well. I have yet to test if the password/pin can be removed by the methods discussed in this thread, and androidpay working after defeating this security. If it does, then this is obviously a major security vulnerability of having an unlocked phone and using androidpay at the same time. Probably not more dangerous in terms of protecting against CC thieves, since they can just swipe a card stolen from your wallet at a terminal, but you probably wouldn't want to keep too many cards on your phone. Again, I haven't tested this out, if a fingerprint is still required to get in after a password database defeat, but someone should do this test.

If you have your phone lost or stolen just cancel your cards as if it happened to your wallet. Simple no?

IR/Remote Support with Unlocked Bootloader

Hey friends.
I'm just about to get an M9, and I know that the second I get it, I'm going to unlock the bootloader and root it. I would get a custom ROM, but the camera doesn't work on those. But that's not the point. As HTC says:
Some content on your device may also be invalidated and cannot be accessed any more because of invalid DRM security keys. (Taken from http://www.htcdev.com/bootloader/.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm hoping despite the wiped DRM keys, the IR sensor will still work.
If you have an M9 with an unlocked bootloader, can you test the IR sensor? (Peel Smart Remote app.) Thanks.

lazyguyMC said:
Hey friends.
I'm just about to get an M9, and I know that the second I get it, I'm going to unlock the bootloader and root it. I would get a custom ROM, but the camera doesn't work on those. But that's not the point. As HTC says:
I'm hoping despite the wiped DRM keys, the IR sensor will still work.
If you have an M9 with an unlocked bootloader, can you test the IR sensor? (Peel Smart Remote app.) Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Works fine for me. DRM keys refer to content (music, videos), don't they​? I've never heard of while apps being disabled.
In any case, Peel Remote works fine with an unlocked bootloader.

computerslayer said:
Works fine for me. DRM keys refer to content (music, videos), don't they​? I've never heard of while apps being disabled.
In any case, Peel Remote works fine with an unlocked bootloader.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
IR works fine here too. DRM in this case applies to firmware updates. Htc dont release any other drm'd content. Digital Rights Management can be applied to any digital file so long the rightful owner is proven.
Secure apps may not let you use them while rooted but that isn't htc's responsibility.
If you're going to root you may as well s-off at the same time for $25. Just rooting it isn't sufficient if anything goes wrong later down the line, especially if custom roms are on the schedule.
Beamed in by telepathy.

What security options do we have?

A little while ago my brother had his iphone6 snatched. Now with Iphone, I know cannot be mounted to usb directly or even via recovery.
I know pin, fingerprint etc block access to the phone. I want to understand about other ways to access internal storage to gain access to photos and any other documents
That makes me ask - What security options we have for android - in particular OP3 (have 2 of them) and how can we make it more secure. ? Both my phones have Blu_spark TWRP + Freedom OS 2.10, if that matters.

Just to share, I found following to be foolproof
- Setup Pin + Fingerpints
- Setup Pin / Password for phone startup
This
- Keeps the device encrypted
- Unable to boot without pin
- Unable to access TWRP without pin
- Doesn't auto-mount on USB connect
Still, it would be interesting to hear about any cons of the above setup.

hyperorb said:
A little while ago my brother had his iphone6 snatched. Now with Iphone, I know cannot be mounted to usb directly or even via recovery.
I know pin, fingerprint etc block access to the phone. I want to understand about other ways to access internal storage to gain access to photos and any other documents
That makes me ask - What security options we have for android - in particular OP3 (have 2 of them) and how can we make it more secure. ? Both my phones have Blu_spark TWRP + Freedom OS 2.10, if that matters.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The easiest is to not get it snatched. Or if it does you chase them down and get your phone back. But barring that not alot you can really do and ill explain why.
When someone steals a phone, they dont care about the data on it. They are either gonna sell it or use it. Either way The device has the sim removed with in sec of it being taken and then it is reset or flashed to stock to remove any and all locks. This normally happens within minutes if not seconds of a device being stolen.

zelendel said:
The easiest is to not get it snatched. Or if it does you chase them down and get your phone back. But barring that not alot you can really do and ill explain why.
When someone steals a phone, they dont care about the data on it. They are either gonna sell it or use it. Either way The device has the sim removed with in sec of it being taken and then it is reset or flashed to stock to remove any and all locks. This normally happens within minutes if not seconds of a device being stolen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Interestingly that was not the case. They remained in contact and kept on asking for phone passcode; which we did not give.
I'm not aware if its equally east in iPhone to enter into (kind of) fastboot mode and erase entire storage. In such case the loss remains of the phone and nothing else ; specially when we may have financial apps too on the phone.

hyperorb said:
Interestingly that was not the case. They remained in contact and kept on asking for phone passcode; which we did not give.
I'm not aware if its equally east in iPhone to enter into (kind of) fastboot mode and erase entire storage. In such case the loss remains of the phone and nothing else ; specially when we may have financial apps too on the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No apple doesn't have the option. Main reason the fbi had to pay to have an iPhone unlocked not to long ago.
Part of the reason I never advise doing any sort of banking on a device as there is just too many security risks. I, mean even android keyboards monitor what you type.

hyperorb said:
A little while ago my brother had his iphone6 snatched. Now with Iphone, I know cannot be mounted to usb directly or even via recovery.
I know pin, fingerprint etc block access to the phone. I want to understand about other ways to access internal storage to gain access to photos and any other documents
That makes me ask - What security options we have for android - in particular OP3 (have 2 of them) and how can we make it more secure. ? Both my phones have Blu_spark TWRP + Freedom OS 2.10, if that matters.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cerberus is a really nice app... You have alot of options sadly it isn't free! But heyy, it's cheap and it's functional! Other then that keep your device encrypted and a boot password should do.

As long as you're not rooted and unlocked, it will be a bit hard for an thieve to have access to your phone. Leaving ADB on, might as well decrease the overall security of the phone.
I for example was given a tablet which had a Google account synced with it, and resetting from recovery only made me renter the credidentials previously used to be able to pass the setup.
My luck was that the guy left ADB on and with a simple command I bypassed the setup screen.

hyperorb said:
Interestingly that was not the case. They remained in contact and kept on asking for phone passcode; which we did not give.
I'm not aware if its equally east in iPhone to enter into (kind of) fastboot mode and erase entire storage. In such case the loss remains of the phone and nothing else ; specially when we may have financial apps too on the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure about iPhone's but for newer Android phones as long as you are encrypted and have a pin/password set for boot, a thief would just wipe the phone return to stock and sell or use it. 99.9% of the time they just want money so the likely reason they wanted your pass code is they couldn't sell it cause they were blocked from resetting it temporarily. As long they have a physical device and unlimited time they will eventually reset it and get rid of it.

Renosh said:
Not sure about iPhone's but for newer Android phones as long as you are encrypted and have a pin/password set for boot, a thief would just wipe the phone return to stock and sell or use it. 99.9% of the time they just want money so the likely reason they wanted your pass code is they couldn't sell it cause they were blocked from resetting it temporarily. As long they have a physical device and unlimited time they will eventually reset it and get rid of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly. If someone steals your device 99.98% of the time it is too use it or sell it. With way your data is meaningless.
As for them wanting your pass code the above is right. But as they couldn't reset it you could have reported it stolen and the police may be able to find it but most of the time they have better things to do then recover a lost cell phone.
I used to work with people that felt with stolen cell phones. I can say the normally. Withing 30 min of a device being stolen the data is gone. And when I say that I mean a complete DOJ style wipe, format and imei change.

zelendel said:
No apple doesn't have the option. Main reason the fbi had to pay to have an iPhone unlocked not to long ago.
Part of the reason I never advise doing any sort of banking on a device as there is just too many security risks. I, mean even android keyboards monitor what you type.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
....so do all iOS keyboards, both first and third party. it's required for them to function
---------- Post added at 09:25 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:23 AM ----------
zelendel said:
Exactly. If someone steals your device 99.98% of the time it is too use it or sell it. With way your data is meaningless.
As for them wanting your pass code the above is right. But as they couldn't reset it you could have reported it stolen and the police may be able to find it but most of the time they have better things to do then recover a lost cell phone.
I used to work with people that felt with stolen cell phones. I can say the normally. Withing 30 min of a device being stolen the data is gone. And when I say that I mean a complete DOJ style wipe, format and imei change.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this is exactly why that semi-recent feature added by google which requires you to log in with the previously added google account in the phone before initial setup following a factory reset is very useful - it makes the phone unusable/unsellable (unless im missing something?)

2x4 said:
....so do all iOS keyboards, both first and third party. it's required for them to function
---------- Post added at 09:25 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:23 AM ----------
this is exactly why that semi-recent feature added by google which requires you to log in with the previously added google account in the phone before initial setup following a factory reset is very useful - it makes the phone unusable/unsellable (unless im missing something?)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That can easily be bypassed by wiping the data off the device and flash a stock rom to it. The only the the FRP does is prevent them from getting at the data.
No its not really. It's so they can send relevant ads. Those that remember smartphones before Apple or Android knows that it is not really needed.

zelendel said:
That can easily be bypassed by wiping the data off the device and flash a stock rom to it. The only the the FRP does is prevent them from getting at the data.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
but how can they flash a stock ROM onto the device if the "require PIN before startup" option is selected? how can they flash if recovery has a PIN on it?

2x4 said:
but how can they flash a stock ROM onto the device if the "require PIN before startup" option is selected? how can they flash if recovery has a PIN on it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Because that is before startup and not the bootloader, even with those set up they normally dont cover download mode or what ever mode that particular OEM uses (not all use the same). In extreme cases with some apps that make it a bit harder or people just dont want to be bothered to mess with things too deeply there are tools available that Will push the update right to the board bypassing all security. Sure its a little extra work but it is a sure bet when you cant get into a device and cant be bothered hunting down getting around it.
Also for the passwords on startup. any password cracker would take out the average password in a matter of min.

This has been very interesting and so much to learn. Thank you all for great inputs.
zelendel said:
I never advise doing any sort of banking on a device as there is just too many security risks. I, mean even android keyboards monitor what you type.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes. But then Microsoft too is not clean. Browser , Windows.... That way we can never work.
Puddi_Puddin said:
Cerberus is a really nice app...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have it in all my Androids Very helpful at times, even for non theft purpose..
XDRdaniel said:
Leaving ADB on, might as well decrease the overall security of the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. Will read more on this.
Renosh said:
for newer Android phones as long as you are encrypted and have a pin/password set for boot, a thief would just wipe the phone return to stock and sell or use it. 99.9% of the time they just want money so the likely reason they wanted your pass code is they couldn't sell it cause they were blocked from resetting it temporarily. As long they have a physical device and unlimited time they will eventually reset it and get rid of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once a phone is lost, there's little chance to get it back. Device loss is one thing and data loss (or rather data access) is another. The later at times can have more problems.
I used to keep my id papers (for ease of printing anywhere as needed) on phone (Nokia N5). Lost that phone .. and till date I hope no one used those to buy services, do illegal stuff. That was a lesson learnt hard way
zelendel said:
With way your data is meaningless.
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Click to collapse
Depends where you are. There are places where one can avail services in other's name using fake ids or stolen data etc.
2x4 said:
. this is exactly why that semi-recent feature added by google which requires you to log in with the previously added google account in the phone before initial setup following a factory reset is very useful - it makes the phone unusable/unsellable (unless im missing something?)
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Click to collapse
Hmm.. I think I came across that in OP3. Didn't pay attention though.
zelendel said:
Because that is before startup and not the bootloader,
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Click to collapse
It is better to loose one than two. Phone is anyways lost .. so at least we can try secure data. Let them wipe and then get nothing in hand.

hyperorb said:
This has been very interesting and so much to learn. Thank you all for great inputs.
Yes. But then Microsoft too is not clean. Browser , Windows.... That way we can never work.
Have it in all my Androids Very helpful at times, even for non theft purpose..
Thanks. Will read more on this.
Once a phone is lost, there's little chance to get it back. Device loss is one thing and data loss (or rather data access) is another. The later at times can have more problems.
I used to keep my id papers (for ease of printing anywhere as needed) on phone (Nokia N5). Lost that phone .. and till date I hope no one used those to buy services, do illegal stuff. That was a lesson learnt hard way
Depends where you are. There are places where one can avail services in other's name using fake ids or stolen data etc.
Hmm.. I think I came across that in OP3. Didn't pay attention though.
It is better to loose one than two. Phone is anyways lost .. so at least we can try secure data. Let them wipe and then get nothing in hand.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You don't need to steal someone's phone to get a fake ID with their info. 1500 usd will get you that without it.
As for getting nothing in hand. They got exactly what they wanted. The device. Unless you work for the government in a high place. Then your data is meaningless on your phone. You already put it in enough places on line while using a pc that if they want it they already have it.
I could easily steal someone identity with a little more then what they post on Facebook or other social media outlets.

Question Hacked pixel 6

Can anyone help me carrier unlock my Verizon phone? My phone has been hacked and I hope being able to flash it will help me to get rid of whatever they have done to it. Can anyone tell me why I get this message when I reset my phone? Any help would be greatly appreciated

there is no carrier unlock for VZW models. if you can boot into recovery, sideload the OTA version that was last on your device.

What did you do that resulted in the phone being hacked? With the sectors being wiped that are shown in the images, it looks like you have provided total device access to something whilst having an unlocked bootloader or something similar. If you let us know what happened, it might help us to figure out what options you may still have.
But definitely see if you can do what @uicnren mentioned first.

Im not sure who or how they wiped anything. It happened one day after connecting to my girlfriends wifi. I got ahold of Verizon and they sent me a new phone and as soon as I started it the same thing happened to it also

How do I find what OTA version was used on my phone?

Nothing hacked here... this is an error when wiping the Secure Element (the trusted secure module).
(https://android-review.linaro.org/p...cure_element/1.0/SecureElementHalCallback.cpp line #66)
Are you initiating the wipe from the recovery? If so, that's likely the reason. If there is an account attached to the device, a wipe must first be initiated from within Android (Settings)

Woodruff87 said:
Im not sure who or how they wiped anything. It happened one day after connecting to my girlfriends wifi. I got ahold of Verizon and they sent me a new phone and as soon as I started it the same thing happened to it also
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
what symptoms were you seeing that made you think you were hacked?
Those errors are normal in Recovery Mode. I see them all the time, sometimes they don't appear, usually they do.
Did you remove your google accounts from settings, do a factory reset from the reset menu and lastly in recovery mode where you posted the screenshots from.
Your Account might be hacked but the phone is unlikely hacked. You would get a message at boot telling you that the device has been modified. With a locked bootloader its extremely unlikely (unless NSO Group is targeting you).

Woodruff87 said:
Can anyone help me carrier unlock my Verizon phone? My phone has been hacked and I hope being able to flash it will help me to get rid of whatever they have done to it. Can anyone tell me why I get this message when I reset my phone? Any help would be greatly appreciated
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you unlock the bootloader? Have custom firmware/kernel installed?
A "hacker" wins nothing by resetting/wiping your phone. They want data, and that only works if the phone can turn on and works. This looks like a wipe/factory reset gone wrong, which spells user error or software error and less likely a "hacker" attack. Most hacks you will never notice. A hacker that makes you notice that something went wrong, is either an amateur or did it on purpose. Ergo, he wants you to know that something went wrong, which usually only happens in order to extort you. If there is no extortion, then an obvious act by a hacker is highly unlikely.
We need some more information. What firmware had you installed? What happened exactly when. Did you install any new apps recently? What did you do prior to something going wrong? All the information that could help us troubleshoot your issue.
You said your phone wiped itself a day after connecting to your girlfriends wifi, and that a replacement device that you got sent by your carrier, did the same. Did you check your Google account? Do you have two factor authentication activated? It sounds like your phone got wiped over wifi, which would require access to your Google account. It's just odd that you get errors, which normally shouldn't happen if someone would use the erase a lost Android device function.
It's also possible that your backup from your GAccount is simply corrupted (many people had issues with random reboots). You should try and set up your (replacement) phone anew without any backup, maybe that can fix your issue.
Beyond that Google account thing-y, anything else is highly unlikely. Even specialized companies have serious issues getting into a modern smartphone, lest alone an Android 12 phone with a Google Server grade Titan m2 chip. The newer the firmware, the less likely the chance that someone from the outside could get in, especially with a phone like a Pixel that isn't very common. Most security firms/govermental agencies can only abuse older, known security loopholes. It's more likely that very popular phones like a Samsung or IPhone are targets from "the bad guys", since there will be bigger payoff for breaking the security of those phones, since there is a greater pool of users to target. Most hacks I've witnessed weren't random, they were targeted. Ask yourself: Am I worth the trouble of getting hacked? Do you have anything of interest on your phone that would warrant an excessive use of resources? Managing to hack a Pixel is not only unlikely in terms of the security you need to breach, but also in terms of the potential payoff in relation to the necessary knowhow and resources. It's just "not worth it".
What you should do immediately, just in case, is secure your Google account. Change your password. Maybe even change your two-factor authentication, if you have one (sms is not secure, use a token generating software/device). Change the wifi password from your girlfriend and check the list of connected devices. make a list of these connected devices + history (find that in the rooter software) and check them against the devices you know of. Also check the list of connected devices to your GAccount. Use the option to log out ALL devices from your Google account, so only your device is connected.
Do any other people have access to your phone? Do any other people know your passwords? Does your girlfriend has access? Do any other people have biometric security saved on your phone? Do you trust your girlfriend completely?
Make sure you use a special, new password for your GAccount, never reuse old ones that you have used somewhere else. Also check your emails on https://haveibeenpwned.com/
Beyond that, if you are not doing already, use a password manager.

Woodruff87 said:
Im not sure who or how they wiped anything. It happened one day after connecting to my girlfriends wifi. I got ahold of Verizon and they sent me a new phone and as soon as I started it the same thing happened to it also
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wait a sec. Verizon sent you a new (refurbished probably but new nonetheless) phone and when you turned it on weren't you greeted with the startup menu? Am I missing something?

Morgrain said:
Did you unlock the bootloader? Have custom firmware/kernel installed?
A "hacker" wins nothing by resetting/wiping your phone. They want data, and that only works if the phone can turn on and works. This looks like a wipe/factory reset gone wrong, which spells user error or software error and less likely a "hacker" attack. Most hacks you will never notice. A hacker that makes you notice that something went wrong, is either an amateur or did it on purpose. Ergo, he wants you to know that something went wrong, which usually only happens in order to extort you. If there is no extortion, then an obvious act by a hacker is highly unlikely.
We need some more information. What firmware had you installed? What happened exactly when. Did you install any new apps recently? What did you do prior to something going wrong? All the information that could help us troubleshoot your issue.
You said your phone wiped itself a day after connecting to your girlfriends wifi, and that a replacement device that you got sent by your carrier, did the same. Did you check your Google account? Do you have two factor authentication activated? It sounds like your phone got wiped over wifi, which would require access to your Google account. It's just odd that you get errors, which normally shouldn't happen if someone would use the erase a lost Android device function.
It's also possible that your backup from your GAccount is simply corrupted (many people had issues with random reboots). You should try and set up your (replacement) phone anew without any backup, maybe that can fix your issue.
Beyond that Google account thing-y, anything else is highly unlikely. Even specialized companies have serious issues getting into a modern smartphone, lest alone an Android 12 phone with a Google Server grade Titan m2 chip. The newer the firmware, the less likely the chance that someone from the outside could get in, especially with a phone like a Pixel that isn't very common. Most security firms/govermental agencies can only abuse older, known security loopholes. It's more likely that very popular phones like a Samsung or IPhone are targets from "the bad guys", since there will be bigger payoff for breaking the security of those phones, since there is a greater pool of users to target. Most hacks I've witnessed weren't random, they were targeted. Ask yourself: Am I worth the trouble of getting hacked? Do you have anything of interest on your phone that would warrant an excessive use of resources? Managing to hack a Pixel is not only unlikely in terms of the security you need to breach, but also in terms of the potential payoff in relation to the necessary knowhow and resources. It's just "not worth it".
What you should do immediately, just in case, is secure your Google account. Change your password. Maybe even change your two-factor authentication, if you have one (sms is not secure, use a token generating software/device). Change the wifi password from your girlfriend and check the list of connected devices. make a list of these connected devices + history (find that in the rooter software) and check them against the devices you know of. Also check the list of connected devices to your GAccount. Use the option to log out ALL devices from your Google account, so only your device is connected.
Do any other people have access to your phone? Do any other people know your passwords? Does your girlfriend has access? Do any other people have biometric security saved on your phone? Do you trust your girlfriend completely?
Make sure you use a special, new password for your GAccount, never reuse old ones that you have used somewhere else. Also check your emails on https://haveibeenpwned.com/
Beyond that, if you are not doing already, use a password manager.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks I really appreciate the help and all the advice. I checked https://haveibeenpwned.com/ and my account has been pawned in 1 data breach... I will deactivate the Google account and start over fresh. Thanks again for all the info

bencozzy said:
Two things are they refurbished? And do they work without signing into google?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The first one was new, but the one I got from Google as a replacement was refurbished. Ill try resetting through the settings and deactivating all my accounts.

Woodruff87 said:
Thanks I really appreciate the help and all the advice. I checked https://haveibeenpwned.com/ and my account has been pawned in 1 data breach... I will deactivate the Google account and start over fresh. Thanks again for all the info
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This, among many other things, is one of the reasons I use GrapheneOS and NO gooble services (despite all the attention they give to sandboxed gooble services).

Woodruff87 said:
Thanks I really appreciate the help and all the advice. I checked https://haveibeenpwned.com/ and my account has been pawned in 1 data breach... I will deactivate the Google account and start over fresh. Thanks again for all the info
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
your google address was found on that site for another service and you used the same password for both services, correct?
despite what some believe, your google account will not get hacked unless your password is insecure (ie. leaked or insufficient with 2FA). anything less and your asking for trouble (also using GrapheneOS).