The Metropolitan Police is to use software that can extract mobile phone contents, including call records and past GPS location data, even if the SIM is locked, as part of a new scheme to speed up crime investigation.
But it will not necessarily be able to break onboard encryption on devices, such as that used by RIM's BlackBerry smartphones, which were blamed for being used to coordinate some of the 2011 riots in the UK.
The Aceso software, from Southampton-based Radio Tactics, will be used by boroughs across the capital and is intended to enable police officers investigating crimes to capture data from mobile phones in ways that are "evidentially sound" – that is, can be produced in court – so phone owners do not have to give up the devices for the duration of a case.
Other forces around the UK already use similar or the same software. Speaking on Tuesday, Bernard Hogan-Howe, the Met's new Commissioner, said that the force's technology was out of date and needed fresh investment. "If we ended up with less people but better technology, and ended up being better at fighting crime, I'd say that wouldn't be a bad thing," he was quoted as saying.
The key use is expected to be tackling people suspected of petty crimes such as burglary. At present, suspects' phones have to be sent for data extraction to a central or outsourced laboratory. That can slow down processing of alleged crimes, said Andy Gill, chief executive of Radio Tactics.
Another key use would be to prove disputed ownership of phones by allowing police to access the content if a phone is suspected of being stolen, and to let witnesses to crimes submit videos or photos as evidence and then retain their phone, rather than having to hand it in as evidence.
Even if the SIM is locked, the new software can bypass it if the police apply to the relevant network operator for a "Pin unlock code". Gill said that the use of such PUCs is, however, regulated by the Regulation of Investigatory Power Act (RIPA) and the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE). He emphasised that the software "is not a hacking tool": "that isn't how it's used," he said. "It's an evidence-gathering tool."
Stephen Kavanagh, deputy assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Service, said that "mobile phones and other devices are increasingly being used in all levels of criminal activity. When a suspect is arrested and found with a mobile phone that we suspect may have been used in crime, traditionally we submit it to our digital forensic laboratory for analysis. Therefore, a solution located within the boroughs that enables trained officers to examine devices and gives immediate access to the data in that handset is welcomed."
He said that having the ability to act on "forensically-sound, time-critical information, from SMS to images contained on a device quickly gives us an advantage in combating crime, notably in terms of identifying people of interest quickly and progressing cases more efficiently".
Gill said that as more people are using smartphones – latest estimates suggest they are used by 53% of the mobile-owning population – there is significantly greater amount of data available to the police from the phones. GPS location data, which is often collected automatically by the phone, "means that you can retrospectively make qualified assumptions about where the phone – and presumably the person – has been".
BlackBerry devices were "an interesting challenge", Gill said: "they're built from the ground up to be secure, which isn't true for other phones which are more aimed at the consumer." The onboard encryption on BlackBerry devices means that if it is used, no useful data can be extracted from it without the decryption key. "But from day to day, at the more consumer end, it's quite routine for people not to use the maximum level of security," he noted.
Gill said that the more rapid processing of phones during the arrest and charging process should mean that the police will rapidly see a significant saving in costs and time.
