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Credit to Author: Lucas Mearian| Date: Wed, 18 Apr 2018 12:32:00 -0700<\/strong><\/p>\n With police departments and federal agencies lining up to buy technology from two companies whose products can bypass iPhone security mechanisms<\/a>, experts said users concerned about privacy should use a strong passcode to help prevent unwanted access to data.<\/p>\n That’s also true for enterprise users with iPhones that access potentially sensitive coporate data.<\/p>\n Simply put, complex passcodes are always better for security, according to Phil Hochmuth, IDC’s program director for enterprise mobility. Common best practices for creating a hard-to-crack passcode includes using both upper- and lower-case characters, numbers and uncommon words.<\/p>\n “I expect enterprises with high security concerns and large iOS corporate deployments will start requiring this and enforcing it via their MDM\/EMM platforms,” Hochmuth said via an email.<\/p>\n Both Israel-based technology vendor\u00a0Cellebrite<\/a>\u00a0and Atlanta-based Grayshift have developed relatively inexpensive technology for unlocking iPhones.<\/p>\n Grayshift’s GrayKey de-encrypting device is a 4-in. x 4-in. box with two iPhone-compatible lightening cables. It can reportedly unlock an iPhone in about two hours \u2013 if the owner used only a four-digit passcode. (A six-digit passcode can take three days or longer to crack.)<\/p>\n One GrayKey box retails for $15,000 and is geofenced to a specific location, requiring an internet connection that enables up to 300 unlocks. There is also a $30,000 GrayKey model that can be used independent of internet connectivity and offers an unlimited number of device unlocks, according to Motherboard<\/em>.<\/p>\n GrayKey iPhone unlocker<\/p>\n Cellebrite provides an iPhone unlocking service to law enforcement agencies; it reportedly charges<\/a> $5,000 per device.<\/p>\n Last week,\u00a0Motherboard reported<\/a> that local and regional U.S. police departments and the federal government have been purchasing the technologies in earest.<\/p>\n While both companies claim they only sell to police and government law enforcement agencies, it’s virtually impossible to keep that genie in the bottle, according to Nate Cardozo, a senior staff attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a non-profit digital rights group.<\/p>\n “If you believe the only people will access to GreyKey or Celebrate are the cops, I’ve got a bridge to sell you,” Cardozo said.<\/p>\n Go to Settings on your iDevice and scroll down to find access to your Passcode.<\/p>\n At a minimum, consumers and businesses should use a six-character alphanumeric passcode or a pass phrase, which addresses risks associated with the leak of personal and enterprise data, according to Gartner research director Dionisio Zumerle.<\/p>\n “In terms of risk assessment, everyone should assume that the tools are improving. Security is a moving target and people need to move with it,” said Gartner research vice president John Girard. “Using stronger PINs and passwords, phtases and so on is a necessary step forward.”<\/p>\n While Apple’s Touch ID and Face ID help with security as well, they don’t preclude the use of a passcode to unlock a phone.<\/p>\n Apple’s iOS 9 operating system boosted the default iPhone passcode from four digits to six; but an even stronger option, an alphanumeric passcode, is more secure.<\/p>\n Next, select “Change Passcode”.<\/p>\n If you’re ready to change your passcode, here’s how to do it:<\/p>\n Final word of advice: Make sure you use a phrase or a combination of letters, numbers and symbols that’s easy to remember.\u00a0<\/p>\n http:\/\/www.computerworld.com\/category\/security\/index.rss<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Credit to Author: Lucas Mearian| Date: Wed, 18 Apr 2018 12:32:00 -0700<\/strong><\/p>\n With police departments and federal agencies lining up to buy technology from two companies whose products can bypass iPhone security mechanisms<\/a>, experts said users concerned about privacy should use a strong passcode to help prevent unwanted access to data.<\/p>\n That’s also true for enterprise users with iPhones that access potentially sensitive coporate data.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n