Ride the Lightning
Cybersecurity and Future of Law Practice Blog
by Sharon D. Nelson Esq., President of Sensei Enterprises, Inc.
Does a PIN Prevent Someone From Accessing Your Phone's Data?
December 12, 2011
We read with interest a post answering that question by the folks at viaForensics. This is certainly a question we are frequently asked – and as the post points out, these PINs (or passwords/passcodes as they are also called) are critical to keep data secure from casual phone thieves and the Joe Six Pack crowd. The exception is the SD card in Android or BlackBerry phones which can contain unencrypted data which is easily read.
If your phone gets to someone with some skills (including the skill of Googling "how-to" infromation), you could be in trouble. As the experts at viaForensics note, they can always get the data on the iPhone, they can only rarely get data from the BlackBerry and sometimes from the Android (it is device dependent).
This is why we caution those who carry sensitive client, patient or other regulated data on their phones that the iPhone (which is a terrific device in terms of functionality) presents a serious security risk. The newer Android phones with onboard encryption are a far more secure choice in view of the rapid decline of RIM and the BlackBerry. Even the Executive Branch of the government and the NSA appear to be preparing to make the move to the Android platform.
We here at Sensei intend to do the same in 2012.
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