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Practical Mobile Forensics
Practical Mobile Forensics

Practical Mobile Forensics: Dive into mobile forensics on iOS, Android, Windows, and BlackBerry devices with this action-packed, practical guide

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Practical Mobile Forensics

Chapter 2. Understanding the Internals of iOS Devices

As of September 2013, Apple had sold more than 550 million iOS devices (170 million iPads and 387 million iPhones) according to released sales records. While iOS is the leading operating system for tablets worldwide, Android continues to be the leading operating system for smartphones worldwide. The following screenshot represents the worldwide mobile/tablet operating system share from 2013 to 2014 according to https://www.netmarketshare.com/operating-system-market-share.aspx?qprid=9&qpcustomb=1:

Understanding the Internals of iOS Devices

Regardless of the statistics, if you are a forensic examiner, chances are you will need to conduct an examination of an iOS mobile device.

In order to perform a forensic examination on an iOS device, the examiner must understand the internal components and inner workings of that device. Developing an understanding of the underlying components of a mobile device will help the forensic examiner understand the criticalities involved...

iPhone models

The iPhone is among the most popular mobile phones on the market. Apple released the first generation iPhone in June 2007. Ever since the first release, the iPhone has gained a lot of popularity due to its advanced functionality and usability. The introduction of the iPhone has redefined the entire world of mobile computing. Consumers started looking for faster and more efficient phones. Various iPhone models exist now with different features and storage capabilities to serve the consumer requirements. The following table lists all the iPhone models and its initial iOS versions. With the iPhone, individuals can access e-mail, take photos and videos, listen to music, browse the Internet, and do much more. Furthermore, endless applications are available for download to extend the standard capabilities that exist on the iPhone.

Device

Model

Initial OS

Internal name

Identifier

Release date

iPhone 2G

A1203

iPhone OS 1.0

M68AP

iPhone 1,1

June 2007

iPhone 3G

A1241

...

iPhone hardware

The iPhone is a collection of modules, chips, and electronic components from different manufacturers. Due to the complexities of the iPhone, the list of hardware components is extensive. A detailed list of iPhone hardware components is defined at https://viaforensics.com/resources/white-papers/iphone-forensics/overview.

The following images show the internals of the iPhone 5S. The images were taken after dismantling the iPhone 5S. Internal images for all iPhones can be found in the teardown section from http://www.ifixit.com/Device/iPhone.

iPhone hardware

The iPhone 5S teardown image—side one (included with kind permission from TechInsights)

And the following is the image showing the back of the iPhone 5S:

iPhone hardware

The iPhone 5S teardown image—side two (included with kind permission from TechInsights)

iPad models

The Apple iPhone changed the way cell phones are produced and used. Similarly, the iPad, a version of the tablet computer introduced in January 2010, squashed the sales of notebooks. With the iPad, individuals can shoot video, take photos, play music, read books, browse the Internet, and do much more. Various iPad models exist now with different features and storage capabilities. The following table lists all the iPad models and their initial iOS versions. Details on identifying iPad models can be found at http://support.apple.com/kb/ht5452.

Device

Model

Initial OS

Internal name

Identifier

Release date

iPad - Wi-Fi

A1219

iOS 3.2

K48AP

iPad 1,1

January 2010

iPad - 3G

A1337

 

iPad 1,1

iPad 2 - Wi-Fi

A1395

 

K93AP

iPad 2,1

March 2011

iPad 2 - GSM

A1396

iOS 4.3

K94AP

iPad 2,2

iPad 2 - CDMA

A1397

 

K95AP

iPad 2,3

iPad 2 - Wi-Fi rev

A1395

 

K93AAP

iPad 2,4

March 2012

iPad 3 - Wi-Fi

A1416

 

J1AP

iPad 3,1

iPad 3 - Wi-Fi + Cellular...

iPad hardware

One of the key successes of Apple iOS devices is the proper selection of its hardware components. Just like the iPhone, the iPad is also a collection of modules, chips, and electronic components from different manufacturers. Internal images for all iPads can be found in the teardown section of http://www.ifixit.com/Device/iPad.

The following images show the internals of the iPad 3. The images were taken after dismantling the iPad 3 cellular model and were obtained from http://www.chipworks.com/.

iPad hardware

The iPad 3 cellular model teardown image—side one (included with kind permission from Chipworks)

The following image shows side two of the iPad 3 cellular model:

iPad hardware

Included with kind permission from Chipworks

File system

To better understand the forensic process of an iPhone, it is good to know about the file system that is used. The file system used in the iPhone and other Apple iOS devices is HFSX, a variation of HFS Plus with one major difference. HFSX is case sensitive whereas HFS Plus is case insensitive. Other differences will be discussed later in this chapter. OS X uses HFS Plus by default and iOS uses HFSX.

iPhone models


The iPhone is among the most popular mobile phones on the market. Apple released the first generation iPhone in June 2007. Ever since the first release, the iPhone has gained a lot of popularity due to its advanced functionality and usability. The introduction of the iPhone has redefined the entire world of mobile computing. Consumers started looking for faster and more efficient phones. Various iPhone models exist now with different features and storage capabilities to serve the consumer requirements. The following table lists all the iPhone models and its initial iOS versions. With the iPhone, individuals can access e-mail, take photos and videos, listen to music, browse the Internet, and do much more. Furthermore, endless applications are available for download to extend the standard capabilities that exist on the iPhone.

Device

Model

Initial OS

Internal name

Identifier

Release date

iPhone 2G

A1203

iPhone OS 1.0

M68AP

iPhone 1,1

June 2007

iPhone 3G

A1241

iPhone...

iPhone hardware


The iPhone is a collection of modules, chips, and electronic components from different manufacturers. Due to the complexities of the iPhone, the list of hardware components is extensive. A detailed list of iPhone hardware components is defined at https://viaforensics.com/resources/white-papers/iphone-forensics/overview.

The following images show the internals of the iPhone 5S. The images were taken after dismantling the iPhone 5S. Internal images for all iPhones can be found in the teardown section from http://www.ifixit.com/Device/iPhone.

The iPhone 5S teardown image—side one (included with kind permission from TechInsights)

And the following is the image showing the back of the iPhone 5S:

The iPhone 5S teardown image—side two (included with kind permission from TechInsights)

iPad models


The Apple iPhone changed the way cell phones are produced and used. Similarly, the iPad, a version of the tablet computer introduced in January 2010, squashed the sales of notebooks. With the iPad, individuals can shoot video, take photos, play music, read books, browse the Internet, and do much more. Various iPad models exist now with different features and storage capabilities. The following table lists all the iPad models and their initial iOS versions. Details on identifying iPad models can be found at http://support.apple.com/kb/ht5452.

Device

Model

Initial OS

Internal name

Identifier

Release date

iPad - Wi-Fi

A1219

iOS 3.2

K48AP

iPad 1,1

January 2010

iPad - 3G

A1337

 

iPad 1,1

iPad 2 - Wi-Fi

A1395

 

K93AP

iPad 2,1

March 2011

iPad 2 - GSM

A1396

iOS 4.3

K94AP

iPad 2,2

iPad 2 - CDMA

A1397

 

K95AP

iPad 2,3

iPad 2 - Wi-Fi rev

A1395

 

K93AAP

iPad 2,4

March 2012

iPad 3 - Wi-Fi

A1416

 

J1AP

iPad 3,1

iPad 3 - Wi-Fi + Cellular Verizon

A1403

iOS...

iPad hardware


One of the key successes of Apple iOS devices is the proper selection of its hardware components. Just like the iPhone, the iPad is also a collection of modules, chips, and electronic components from different manufacturers. Internal images for all iPads can be found in the teardown section of http://www.ifixit.com/Device/iPad.

The following images show the internals of the iPad 3. The images were taken after dismantling the iPad 3 cellular model and were obtained from http://www.chipworks.com/.

The iPad 3 cellular model teardown image—side one (included with kind permission from Chipworks)

The following image shows side two of the iPad 3 cellular model:

Included with kind permission from Chipworks

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Description

The book is an easy-to-follow guide with clear instructions on various mobile forensic techniques. The chapters and the topics within are structured for a smooth learning curve, which will swiftly empower you to master mobile forensics. If you are a budding forensic analyst, consultant, engineer, or a forensic professional wanting to expand your skillset, this is the book for you. The book will also be beneficial to those with an interest in mobile forensics or wanting to find data lost on mobile devices. It will be helpful to be familiar with forensics in general but no prior experience is required to follow this book.

What you will learn

  • Learn different approaches to practical mobile forensics
  • Understand the architecture and security mechanisms present in iOS and Android platforms
  • Identify sensitive files on iOS and Android platforms
  • Set up the forensic environment
  • Extract data on iOS and Android platforms
  • Recover data on iOS and Android platforms
  • Understand the forensics of Windows and BlackBerry devices
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Product Details

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Publication date, Length, Edition, Language, ISBN-13
Publication date : Jul 21, 2014
Length: 328 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781783288311
Category :
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Product Details

Publication date : Jul 21, 2014
Length: 328 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781783288311
Category :
Concepts :
Tools :

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Table of Contents

14 Chapters
1. Introduction to Mobile Forensics Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
2. Understanding the Internals of iOS Devices Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
3. Data Acquisition from iOS Devices Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
4. Data Acquisition from iOS Backups Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
5. iOS Data Analysis and Recovery Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
6. iOS Forensic Tools Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
7. Understanding Android Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
8. Android Forensic Setup and Pre Data Extraction Techniques Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
9. Android Data Extraction Techniques Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
10. Android Data Recovery Techniques Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
11. Android App Analysis and Overview of Forensic Tools Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
12. Windows Phone Forensics Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
13. BlackBerry Forensics Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Index Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Customer reviews

Top Reviews
Rating distribution
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Half star icon 4.4
(11 Ratings)
5 star 63.6%
4 star 27.3%
3 star 0%
2 star 0%
1 star 9.1%
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SuJo Oct 07, 2014
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Excellent guide to not only useful tools to analyze and recover data from mobile devices, iOS, Android, and MS are all covered. While I felt restricted as the author used Mac OS for most of the operations for the iOS devices, some windows applications that are open source would be nice to have. If this is for a professional company then the $1,500 price tag for one of the software options are not a major concern.You'll certainly walk away with a good understanding of how the different OS versions store the data and how to access it rather quickly, having rooted devices makes this task much easier. Part of gathering data is knowing where to look and this book not only gives you that information, but takes it a step further and gives you some handy database related commands to extract the data you'd most likely be interested in.All in all I give this book 5 starts because it did have a lot of solid information despite the lack luster for lower cost software solutions. If you're looking to get into data recovery for mobile platforms or do the forensic work, do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of this book already.Publisher Link: https://www.packtpub.com/application-development/practical-mobile-forensics
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Michele McKenzie Mar 09, 2015
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Great book, bought it to do my final year project on Mobile phone forensics, info on the phone specifications and Oxygen are great!
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Scribe Dec 04, 2014
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
This is an excellent forensics overview of where important files can be found on multiple mobile platforms. One of the biggest challenges for a mobile examiner is the ability to shift gears to a different operating system and perform a competent exam on short notice. this book is useful for the main file/data locations where key info lives. It is not meant for a deep and detailed analysis of specific operating system point release nuances, but there are other references that do offer a deep dive when needed. The title is exactly what the book does. It is a useful reference.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
M. Eskridge Mar 25, 2015
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Great item at a great price. Thank you.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Osram Oct 22, 2014
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Excellent book. It is a very reliable guide either for professional or for people interested in a solid a reliable guide to data recovery and mobile forensic.Some tools used are expensive and more suitable for professional companies, nonetheless non professional users wil beneficiate of the clear methodology framework applied for all different OS examined: iOS, Android, Blackberry and Windows.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
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