Instructions Show How Cops Use GrayKey to Brute Force iPhones

New written instructions for the iPhone unlocking tech GrayKey obtained by Motherboard provide more insight into the capabilities of the device, including whether GrayKey can unlock iPhones that are turned off or when the iPhone's battery is running low.

"How to unlock and EXTRACT DATA from Apple Mobile Devices with GrayKey," the instructions, seemingly written by the San Diego Police Department, read. Motherboard obtained the documents via a public records request.

Do you work at Grayshift or know anything else about the company’s products? We’d love to hear from you. Using a non-work phone or computer, you can contact Joseph Cox securely on Signal on +44 20 8133 5190, Wickr on josephcox, OTR chat on jfcox@jabber.ccc.de, or email joseph.cox@vice.com.

GrayKey, made by Austin-based Grayshift, is designed to unlock modern iOS devices and extract their contents. iOS devices are encrypted by default, meaning someone needs to have, or guess, the device's passcode to access some of the data stored on it. iOS devices protect themselves from brute force attacks, where a piece of software rapidly churns through passcode possibilities, but GrayKey can successfully brute force iOS devices in some cases. The company is constantly in a cat-and-mouse game with Apple , which tries to fix security issues that GrayKey takes advantage of. Local police around the country have bought GrayKey units, Motherboard has shown .

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