This article like the other articles is an excerpt from my book Cyber Lies.  The purpose of these articles is to help you gain a better understanding of technology.  It may hopefully help you to start to move forward learning what you need to know to protect yourself, since the book will not be available until April 2006. 

 

This is the first article that will show you how to access information, more specifically how to access and analyze information on cell phones.  This article will not cover cell phone forensics as that will be covered in-depth in the book when it is released.  Cell phone forensics will enable you to preserve the information located on the cell phone and to gain access to additional information that may have been deleted from the cell phone but still resides on the phone’s storage media.   However, a majority of the time the information you are looking for is right there for you to find. 

 

There is nothing like a spouse that is experiencing an overwhelming feeling of frustration and betrayal to figure out a way to get to a cell phone as well as the data that is stored within or on a voicemail system.  I have been involved in cases where they have done just that.  Some of my clients have been successful and others have not.  I can tell you that the level of success will always be proportionate to your level of determination; and the amount of knowledge you have about cell phones.  So this article is going to be very important to you if you are interested in learning how to access cell phones to get the data you need to review. 

 

It is important to remember that most people take technology for granted and its human nature that causes us to fall into a false sense of security; not to mention that most people underestimate the abilities of their spouse.  Cheating spouses often think that no one has the ability to look at their cell phone because it is with them all the time; but is it?  It is often these misconceptions that cause them to use their phone without discretion, which eventually may expose an affair if their spouse knows how to look at the information on the cell phone.  Cell phones have a potential treasure trove of information so knowing as much as you can about your spouse’s cell phone is important. 

 

There are so many manufacturers, makes and models of cell phones and each has its own unique feature set, as well as methods of storing and accessing the information on each one of these phones.  So my point is that a little research, a little education and social engineering are going to be the keys to your success.  The first step is to find out everything you can about your spouse’s cell phone.  I am sure you are well familiar with your spouse’s sleeping patterns, so you can do this by taking a look at it while they are sleeping.  Make sure you record as much information as possible about the phone.  If the manufacturer and model are not visible, then you will have to take out the battery, which is usually located under a removable panel on the back of the phone.  When you do so, make sure to place the battery down and look at the information in the well of the phone where the battery came out of.  Some make the mistake and take the information off the back of the battery.  While there are some exceptions, most of time that information is about the battery and not the phone.  Don’t make that mistake or you may have to start all over again. 

 

Now you need to know what features the phone has, how to use these features and how to access the information that is stored on the device.  You can accomplish this in one of two ways.  You can track down the manual and read it inside and out but that is not much use if you do not have the phone in front of you.  Remember, your spouse takes it with them everyday.  When the manual tells you to hit a specific key and you don’t have the phone in front of you, it makes it difficult to retain the information you are trying to learn.  Searching for the information on the Internet is possible, but again without the phone being in front of you; it will make learning and retention of the information harder.  Asking your spouse to leave it home so you can become familiar with its features is also out of the question.  I think that might raise their suspicions.  So I am going to ask you to think of an easy way to learn about the phone while having one to practice with.  I am asking you because I want you to start thinking about the resources available to you.  I want you to start to develop an analytical mind as it relates to these types of activities.  So don’t cheat and actually stop here for a few minutes and think about how you can learn as much information about the phone as possible.  If you have a good idea or if you tried and can’t think of one then start to read again. 

 

Ok, let’s find out what the easiest way to get to know the phone.  Have someone show you everything you need to know and when you are not sure ask them to explain it again.  How you ask?  It’s easy, go to the local phone store and ask if they have that make and model cell phone.  If they do, this is where a little social engineering comes in handy.  Pretend that you are very interested in purchasing that phone and you would like to find out as much information as possible to make sure you like it and that it will meet your needs.  Act like the good consumer and start with wanting to know about its features.  This is called social engineering.  Hey, keep notes and if they ask why you are writing things down, tell them you want to compare the features to other phones that you also want to look at.  Remember, you’re the good consumer.  If they tell you that the model is no longer available, then ask to see the model that replaced it.  Never take their recommendation to go with a new cell phone that is made by a different manufacturer.  Different manufacturers have different features and may have totally different ways of accessing the features and data.  If you stay with the same manufacturer and just change the model, then you are more likely to find a phone that works similar to your spouse’s.  When manufacturers release a new model they typically keep the same features, while adding new ones and they use the same methods to access those features or they would get a lot of negative feedback from their current users. 

 

Start with the features and ask them to tell you all the capabilities of the phone.  Ask questions like, how do I take a picture?  How do I view all the pictures I have taken?  Have the sales associate take you through the logs and ask them to explain the purpose of each of the logs.  Learn how to access all of the logs as well as all text messages, both sent and received and learn how to send them.  Act like you are very interested in the phone and learn as much as you can.  Remember, never rush anything or you can destroy the very data you are trying to locate and recover.

 

Now that you have learned everything you need to know about your spouse’s cell phone, let’s talk about the data that is stored on cell phones.  A cell phone’s primary use is as a telephone.  We use this device to make and receive phone calls.  Outgoing calls are made by dialing the number desired and then hitting the send button.  When outgoing calls are made, regardless whether or not they were successful, they are stored in a log that is accessible by the user.  This is a log that is typically identified as “DIALED”.  If you were to access the dialed log, you would see a listing of numbers that were dialed by that cell phone.  If you scroll through and highlight anyone of the numbers and then hit the enter button, you would gain access to different data fields.  Be careful which button you hit or it may dial that number.  These fields of data include the number called, a name if it was programmed into the phone by your spouse, the date and time of the call and the duration of the call, which is all very important information.   Where else do you think you could get the same information?  Your right!  Your cell phone bills, so remember that because we will be coming back to that later when we discuss the cell phone bills. 

 

There is also a log that is identified as “RECEIVED”.  If you were to access the received log, you would see a listing of numbers, which are the phone numbers of line and cell phones that have called that cell phone.  A line phone is a phone number that is assigned to a house or business.  It is referred to as a line phone because there are phone company lines running to their home or building.  If you scroll through and highlight anyone of the numbers and then hit the enter button, you would gain access to different data fields.  These fields of data include the originating number, a name if programmed into the phone by your spouse, the date and time of the call and the duration of the call, which is all very important information.  However, not all the same information may be available on your cell phone bills for inbound calls, as it is for outbound calls on cell phone bills.  So make sure to record all of this information. 

 

Once you have made the decision to start looking at your spouse’s cell phone, the best plan is the simplest.  When your spouse is in the middle of a deep sleep, take their cell phone and start to access all of the logs.  Record the contents of the logs by writing them on a piece of paper and take care to make sure you know what paper has the DIALED numbers and what paper has the RECEIVED numbers.  This is time consuming but it gets you started for now and by the way, it makes a lot less noise in the middle of the night.  Starting up a computer takes time and if you are not careful, the noise it makes can wake your spouse. 

 

After you have recorded all the logs, take a look at the pictures, at all the text messages and at all the Quick Text Message listing.  If your spouse is involved with another person then you may find a picture of that person, which was sent to the phone in any one of a number of ways, so make sure you look at everything.  As you look through the text messages be sure to record as much information as possible including the originating number or email address.  Text messages can be sent from other phones and also email accounts.  The Quick Text Message listing is a listing of short pre-canned messages that you simply highlight and then send to the desired recipient.  In other words, you don’t have to type them in each time.  Sometimes you will see messages like “Love you” or “Call you in 15 minutes”.  These messages are usually the default messages that came preprogrammed with the phone.  It is important for you to know what the default Quick Text messages are so you will be able to differentiate them from the Quick Text messages that were added in by your spouse.  So if you see I love you Terry and your name is not Terry, then this was added to the phone by your spouse.  You can do this by making a list of the pre-canned messages when you are at the phone store.  This way you will know the pre-canned messages ahead of time and you will be able to pick out the new Quick Text Messages that your spouse entered it in themselves.  I can tell you that messages like “I love you Terry” do not come pre-programmed with the phone, which means that your spouse placed it there, which means that they may be involved in another relationship.

 

Don’t be tempted to analyze the data after you copied it to paper.  Get the cell phone back in its place and get to bed.  There is plenty of time to do the analysis when it is safe and there is absolutely no chance of getting caught.  Let me say that one more time.  Don’t be tempted to analyze the data after you copied it to paper.  Get the cell phone back in its place and get to bed.  You will thank me for that later.  People have been caught by their spouse doing just that.  Don’t take chances or you may end up losing the element of surprise and all the data you might have recovered may be gone and any future analysis may be fruitless. 

 

When reviewing the cell phone logs it is important to remember that either of these logs can easily be deleted or altered but that nothing can be edited.  That means that individual log entries can be deleted, which alters the log but the individual call transactions entries cannot be modified.  For example, I can go into the DIALED log and start to delete entries one at a time.  I can be as selective as I want or I can just delete all the entries.  However, by deleting all of the logs, as a cheater I would raise the suspicion of my spouse, should they be checking my phone.  So what do I do?  I delete only those entries that I feel are personal.  So when the spouse looks at that data, it has been sanitized.  That means that specific call transactions were deleted from the logs and no evidence of these calls has been left for anyone to find.  This can happen to any log or data that is stored on that cell phone.

 

However, while they made your job a little harder and more time consuming, they have certainly helped you identify the numbers that are key to them and that are of clear evidentry value.  All you have to do is know what numbers they deleted.  Easy right?  Yes, it is easy.  Remember those phone bills I told you about, now its time to get them out.  Once you have them, now get the phone logs that you have been keeping.  You take the phone logs of what was in the dialed directory and compare it to the cell phone bill outgoing calls for that same period.  The dates and times should match to the minute.  Then you start to highlight those numbers that are on the cell phone bill but were not listed in the DIALED log.  If they were deleting numbers from that listing you’ve not only identified a potential suspicious number, but you now have additional information you didn’t have before.  I love it when they totally misunderstand technology and end up making your life easier.  Why don’t they just tell you the numbers they called and get it over with?  Once you’re done with that exercise, then you do the same for the RECEIVED logs.  Again, highlighting those entries that are on the cell phone bills but are not in the RECEIVED logs.  Remember, depending on the data that the cell phone provider prints on the cell phone bills, RECEIVED numbers may or may not be there. 

 

I know that reviewing these logs and then comparing them to the cell phone bills is time consuming and tedious, I said it would be earlier.  However, it may provide you a wealth of information without spending money.  I also recognize that not everyone will have access to the cell phone bills for a number of reasons.  The best way to proceed is to still record all of the information and then key in on the calls that had the longest durations.  Then work your way back to calls with the least durations.  Then start to zero in on the early evening timeframe when your spouse is not typically home and yet most places have closed.  Look at all those numbers that are in the DIALED and RECEIVED logs that meet certain criteria and work from there.  You know your spouse better than anyone so improvise if you have to and you may get what you’re looking for. 

 

You can sometimes identify the owner of a phone number by searching for it online using one of the major search engines or even portals that provide reverse phone lookups.  A reverse phone number lookup is when you use a number to search for the subscriber, instead of using a name to find a number.  If you go to your favorite search engine and enter the key phrase Reverse Phone Search, this will provide you with a listing of sites that may help you identify the subscriber of line phones or enter the key phase Reverse Cell Phone search, this will provide you with a listing of sites that may help you identify the subscriber of a cell phone number. 

 

If all else fails and you want to see who is on the other end, use a pay phone that is not by your home or work and just call the number.  If you do this late at night or during the busy times of the day you may just get the voicemail system and may not only hear the voice but also the name of the subscriber.  We all love to leave our names on the intro message that callers always hear.  

 

Before I leave you there are a few more things you need to know about cell phones that you may not be aware of.  This knowledge may help to provide additional information that you can use to narrow down or key into specific timeframes.  First, they have the ability to be locked and then password protected.  So if you pickup your spouse’s cell phone, don’t turn it off or you may find that you just locked yourself out. 

 

Second, when someone calls a cell phone and the person is on the phone with another party, the person who called the cell phone will hear beeps, which are designed to tell you that the person you are calling is on the phone with another party.  So, remember that piece of information.  This might provide some crucial information that you may not have thought about.  For example, you call your spouse and you hear the beeps telling you that they are on the phone.  However, your spouse may not place them on hold and pickup your call.  They may just let your call go to voicemail.  Note the date and time of this and check the phone bills just to see who they were on the phone with at that time.  It may be nothing but it may also be another lead for you. 

 

Spouses who are cheating sometimes have a hard time switching their train of thought and mood from talking to their “friend” to their spouse.  Their sense of guilt might give them away so they just avoid the call from their spouse and may call them back later when they have a chance to regroup.  That is not to say that every spouse is like that or that every time your spouse does not pick up your call, they are cheating on you.  It is only meant to get you to start thinking about collecting information and then verifying it as you move forward.  The more information you have, the easier it will be to determine if your spouse is cheating on you. 

 

Third, cell phones are programmed and then follow that programming.  One of the key features about the cell phone is the voicemail system.  So it is important for you to become familiar with it.  One programming feature you should be checking; is to see how many rings it takes for the voicemail to normally pickup.  The best way to determine this would be to set your spouse’s cell phone to vibrate and then call your spouse’s cell phone while they are sleeping.  Count how many rings it takes before the voicemail system picks up.  Try it twice and you will see it is the same amount of rings each time.  When you are done make sure to delete your phone number from your spouse’s RECEIVED logs.  If you don’t and they see it there they may wonder why you are calling their phone in the middle of the night.  Not good.  Also delete the numbers out of your DIALED logs just incase your spouse is checking your phone. 

 

So, remember that piece of information.  This might provide some crucial information that you may not have thought about.  For example, you call your spouse and it goes to voicemail in just two rings when you know that it usually takes 6 rings.  This means that your spouse has manually sent you to voicemail.  Depending on the phone this is done by simply hitting the end key.  They do this to stop the phone ringing as they have no intention of picking up.  It is important to note the date and time of this because it may provide additional information later. 

 

If you are manually sent to voicemail it may be that your spouse is in a meeting or it may be that they are with their “friend”.  It is only meant to provide you with additional information that while it is not relevant now, may be in the future, so make sure to record it. 

 

Ok, this is where I leave you for now.  I hope this helps you to start to collect, compile and analyze information that may eventually lead you to finding the truth.  While the truth is not always easy to face, it is something that you deserve.  I wish you well.