A couple of days ago, my phone was taken by security forces while I was protesting. They beat me up, so I couldn’t do much at the time and ended up in the hospital. Now that I have some time, what steps should I take next? I noticed my phone had activity from Soul Knight (a game app) even though it had a PIN. I think they accessed it somehow. Should I remove all third-party apps connected to my account? I’ve already tried a factory reset, signed out, and changed my passwords. What else can I do to protect myself? I have an Android phone, a Samsung Galaxy something.
I would do a remote wipe ASAP, and in the future, only bring a burner phone to any protest.
Arielle said:
I would do a remote wipe ASAP, and in the future, only bring a burner phone to any protest.
Google’s Find My Device works from a browser.
Chances are your government has your phone in a faraday container, which means any action you take now won’t make a difference. They’ve likely already made a forensic copy of your device.
I’m getting downvoted for saying this, but I know the practices of law enforcement and digital forensics. Strange community.
So what are you going to do? Only carry a burner phone, everywhere?
For most of us, that would be overkill, but for those in dangerous places, you might want to look into phantom partitions. It’s a way to hide data on your phone and switch between a clean version and the real one. It’s hard to detect, even for professionals. I use it when I cross borders, and I’d definitely do the same if I were near a protest in a risky country.
@BillSmith
Oh, they definitely know about hidden partitions.
Arielle said:
I would do a remote wipe ASAP, and in the future, only bring a burner phone to any protest.
Sadly, they probably cloned the storage already. It’s a common way to bypass the locks.
Talk to your cell phone provider and ask them to mark the phone as stolen and lock it if possible.
Change all the passwords stored on the phone and revoke any device authentication from services that allow it.
Google’s help link: Add or remove trusted computers - Computer - Google Account Help
That’s about it. Once the phone is locked and passwords are changed, they can still reset it and use it with WiFi. Hopefully, the provider will keep it marked as stolen to prevent it from being activated by someone else.
Holy shit! I can’t offer much help past what you’ve already done, but wanted to offer sympathy. Keep fighting the good fight!
@Cleo
Even then, if they try to access your accounts and go online with it, Google will wipe everything instantly, right?
If they just have a copy, they won’t be able to access anything new anyway, even with that copy. I wouldn’t worry too much if it was just for protesting.
Next time, maybe leave the phone at home, that’s a good tip.
@Ashwin
All they can do is look at the phone when it was seized. But once it connects to a network, everything will be wiped. They’re not going to use it for any malicious purpose. It’s more for gathering information.
@Ashwin
They don’t care about the day-to-day. They just want to check if you’re in any groups, like terrorists, or if you’ve made threats. They won’t be keeping a log of your activities from the time they got your phone.
The first thing you should’ve done was wipe the phone as soon as it was taken.
Honestly, your phone has been imaged and there’s nothing you can do to stop your data from being further taken. Even if you get your phone back, they already have a full copy of it from when it was taken.
Anyone who tells you otherwise doesn’t know what they’re talking about.
@GuyBolding
This is the correct answer, but that last line is a bit much. You’re not exactly the authority on this either.
Sadly, you’re too late to do much preventative work.
Do you have anything on the phone or in your accounts that could get you in trouble? Don’t answer that.
What you need to do is talk to a human rights lawyer right away.
Then, learn about operational security. If you’re protesting, your government can use your cell connection, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi to track you very accurately. Even though they probably won’t put that much effort into it, it’s something to keep in mind.
Never bring a phone to a protest if you can avoid it. If you do, make sure it’s a burner phone or, at least, powered off.
If it’s a burner, don’t link it to your main accounts. Use apps like Briar for communications in these situations.
And forget about pins and biometrics for security. Those aren’t enough. Even geo-fencing isn’t safe. If I know where you live, I can use cheap equipment to unlock your phone when you’re home.
Sending support to you!
As I wrote, a couple of days ago my phone was
stolengenerously donatedbyto the security forces when I wasprotestingshowing undying admiration for the benevolent General Krull. after that I wasbeateneducated, so I couldn’t do much about it as I was in thehospitaladequate living arrangement.
ALL HAIL KRULL and his glorious new regime.
Signed,
Internet User.
You should definitely remove all the third-party apps linked to your Google account. Also, use two-factor authentication, keep an eye on your accounts to spot any strange logins, and ask your provider to block the device if you can. Be careful!
Sounds like it was confiscated, not stolen.