Collecting Identifying Data for Re-Identification of Mobile Devices carried at a Crime Scene using Wi-Fi Routers

Abstract

Mobile devices such as smartphones constantly probe the surrounding wireless medium for providing services to users, thus leaving traces that, when analysed, can link their presence to a crime. Those passive observations, combined with actively tricking devices to cooperate with foreign networks, can yield an attractive device profile. Though past research explores independent methods for collecting single identifiers of devices, a holistic approach for data seizure and utilization for law enforcement is missing. As devices carried by criminals are not willing to share identifiers with a victim's home network, we combine collection processes for device-identifying data with exploiting viable wireless communication protocols. Using the presented approach allows to build a system supporting law enforcement with evidence that certain mobile devices were present at a crime scene and thus may give clues on further investigations on suspects.