After two days: FBI unlocks Trump assassin's cell phone

Just two days after the attempted assassination of former US President Donald Trump, the FBI has access to the shooter's cell phone. This was announced by the US authorities on Monday night. It is not clear from the announcement which model is involved.

It is also unclear how the FBI was able to bypass the smartphone's security measures so quickly. In the past, it sometimes took weeks or months for US authorities to crack the cell phones of suspects. The FBI had asked Apple several times to unlock a cell phone. However, Apple always refused - the company did not want to build a backdoor into its phones for the FBI.

In 2016, the FBI even tried to force Apple to unlock the phone with a court order. However, this did not happen because the security agency was able to unlock the phone elsewhere in the meantime. In at least one case, a suspect was made to hold his face in front of his iPhone to unlock it with the Face Unlock function.

Brute force attack on PIN

Depending on their length, cell phone PINs can be unlocked within minutes using brute force methods, but cell phones are generally protected against such attacks. Several providers offer devices that can help bypass such locks. These include the Israeli company Cellebrite, which also works with German authorities.

According to a report by The Verge, FBI agents initially tried to break into the Trump assassin's cell phone. After these attempts failed, the cell phone was unlocked in an FBI laboratory in Quantico in the US state of Virginia.

The speed with which the FBI was able to unlock the cell phone of the Trump assassin killed by security forces is remarkable. However, because neither the manufacturer nor the exact model were disclosed, comparisons with previous cases are difficult.

(dahe)