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Joined: Mar 2007
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SOP for evidence collection of computers is to unplug it. The techs pull the hard drive, thus bypassing anything in startup/shutdown that might destroy the data.
Unless said computer is attached to "the bomb", in which case you have to get it out of the city so Jack Bauer can disarm it.
Last edited by noderaser; 12/09/09 11:03 PM.
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Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 9,923 Likes: 32
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If these guys have any decent encryption on the hard drive, taking it out is just a start on a long road in the lab. Your average local law enforcement agency is not going to break that encryption.
Greg Fretwell
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Joined: Dec 2002
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Even when the password is known, we have deleted encrypted data and were unable to recover it with the best of equipment and bit for bit forensic duplication. But then again, I am not in law enforcement. The other side is, the same equipment was able to read a dead hard drive (would not even spin up) and recreate the entire data set without any loss. Sometimes you win, sometimes you loose.
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Joined: Oct 2006
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Wow, I was just pointing this out from a safety perspective.
---Ed---
"But the guy at Home Depot said it would work."
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Joined: Jul 2004
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You are right Ed this is a safety nightmare. I hope they have a dummy receptacle to protect the power strip plug when they are transporting this.
Greg Fretwell
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Joined: Jan 2005
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Oddly enough, we had a gent in the chat asking what would happen if he made a cord with two male ends, and plugged it into two receptacles.
It was pointed out (by others) that this is the wrong place to ask those sorts of questions.
What that device needs is a pair of asbestos gloves and a blast shield.
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Joined: Mar 2007
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If these guys have any decent encryption on the hard drive, taking it out is just a start on a long road in the lab. Your average local law enforcement agency is not going to break that encryption. I think the idea is, that anyone who's smart enough to use encryption is probably not going to fall under local jurisdiction. The locals are probably only going to be taking care of common identity thieves or the casual internet predator, who probably aren't going to have a high operational level of computer knowledge.
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Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 9,923 Likes: 32
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It is 2009, high school kids know about encryption, if only to hide their porn from mom. Your average local cops can't break PGP and that is free on the net.
Greg Fretwell
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Joined: Mar 2005
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Wow, I was just pointing this out from a safety perspective. I was looking at this thing, thinking it probably just has a sync relay built in that prevents you from throwing two out-of-phase. Which really wouldn't be much of a problem if you're plugging both sides of HotPlug into the same circuit, but would at least prevent a big bang. So at first glance, they're trying to make an inherently unsafe operation as safe as possible- worst you have is an exposed plug which is only exposed a few seconds. But then I saw this gem on their one pdf: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Q: How can I use HotPlug to seize a computer using an insulated European power plug? A: You may need to dismantle the electrical outlet and establish electrical connection directly with the outlet’s wires. This should not be attempted except by trained personnel. WiebeTech offers an accessory kit containing several tools that may be useful for this purpose (p/n WC-KIT-1). See the HotPlug web page for more details. $50, John? You can replicate this thing for $2 with a double-ended extension cord. All this box does is give the illusion of safety.
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Joined: Jun 2007
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All this is is a redneck generator cord with an auto transfer relay!
PGP is good enough that the government got really freaked out when it was introduced. Any kid can use AES these days.
It could be a serial killer and I doubt the FBI would be willing to allocate enough computing resources to brute force AES if he used a truly strong password or phrase. You'd need a pretty nice supercomputer.
Luckily, most users use dictionary words as passwords, so a dictionary attack is usually all you need to get in. A dictionary attack can be done on a good PC in minutes.
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Posts: 806
Joined: October 2004
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