Forensic Filtering of Cell Phone Protocols

Phone managers are non-forensic software tools designed to carry out a range of tasks for the user, such as reading and updating the contents of a phone, using one or more of the communications protocols supported by the phone. Phone managers are sometimes used by forensic investigators to recover data from a cell phone when no suitable forensic tool is available. While precautions can be taken to preserve the integrity of data on a cell phone, inherent risks exist. Applying a forensic filter to phone manager protocol exchanges with a device is proposed as a means to reduce risk.