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iPhone Recovery Stick could help you find what you never wanted to see

By | August 12, 2010, 9:45am PDT

Summary: Ever wanted to know what your significant other was hiding on that pesky little iPhone? Well, now you have the chance to be a snoop with the iPhone Recovery Stick.

Ever wanted to know what your significant other was hiding on that pesky little iPhone? Well, now you have the chance to be a snoop with the iPhone Recovery Stick.

All a curious user needs to do is attach the USB Recovery Stick to the same computer as the iPhone. The technical catches are twofold:

  • The computer needs to be running Windows XP, Vista, 7, 2000 or 2003 (Seriously, not a Mac?)
  • The iPhone must be running iOS 3.2.1 or earlier (Compatibility with iOS 4 and later should be coming soon)

Then you can check out text messages, call history, voice notes, calendar entries, contacts, map history and (most importantly) photos. Users can even obtain deleted content, but its not clear how far back you can go just yet. Be sure to square out enough time to get what you’re looking for as it takes 20 minutes per GB for recovery.

One of these little spy-like devices can be yours for the not-so-low price of $197.95. But the real question is if you really want to see what you might find or not.

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Topics

Apple iPhone, Recovery, Smart Phones, Consumer Electronics, Personal Technology, Rachel King

Rachel King is a staff writer for ZDNet based in San Francisco.

Disclosure

Rachel King

Rachel King has no business relationships, affiliations, investments, or other potential conflicts of interest relating to the content posted in this blog.

Biography

Rachel King

Rachel King is a staff writer for CBS Interactive in San Francisco. Before serving as a contributing editor at ZDNet in New York City for two years, she previously worked for The Business Insider, FastCompany.com, CNN's San Francisco bureau and the U.S. Department of State. Rachel has also written for MainStreet.com, Irish America Magazine and the New York Daily News, among others. Rachel has a B.A. in Mass Communications and History from the University of California, Berkeley and a M.S. in Journalism from Columbia University, where she served as art director for the student magazine, Plated.

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Recover all lost data for iphone and android mobile
jaylun Updated - 20th Mar
Recover lost photo,video,music from iphone and Android,For android recover http://www.recovery-iphone.com/android-data-recovery.html

For iphone recover : http://www.recovery-iphone.com/iphone-ipod-ipad-data-recovery.html
View in thread
0 Votes
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Maybe when Apple opens up xCode to Windows will Macs get a Recovery Stick
HypnoToad72 12th Aug 2010
in return.

grin

Personally, I've gone back to a regular cell phone. Internet I need. A cell phone I need (who doesn't, apart from the pay phones rusting in the landfill). A portable game machine I don't and that's all the iPhone is really good for. And it's not worth developing for since the chances of prospering are too limited and few: http://wmpoweruser.com/average-iphone-app-only-earns-2-per-day-or-why-the-app-store-is-a-fools-errand/
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RE: iPhone Recovery Stick could help you find what you never wanted to see
Doctor Demento 12th Aug 2010
@HypnoToad72

I don't know....$2 a day ain't bad....especially if you have lots of apps in the app store....you will probably not make enough to quit your day job, but $730 additional income per app per year ain't bad at all
0 Votes
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Yes but
Peter Perry 12th Aug 2010
@HypnoToad72 It really isn't the developers fault, the App store just plain sucks... You can't see what users rated the highest, no just what is downloaded the most (that doesn't mean they're good)... Oh and Genius, lies to you about the ratings of the apps and if you go find the app apart from Genius you'll see they often have lower ratings than the Genius indicates.

Now the Android Marketplace makes it very easy to find new things so I would bet those apps make more money.
0 Votes
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RE: iPhone Recovery Stick could help you find what you never wanted to see
jorjitop 13th Aug 2010
@Peter Perry
And the Android Marketplace makes it very easy to get malware. A nice, open environment begging to be abused, like all Android users.
  • Flagged
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RE: iPhone Recovery Stick could help you find what you never wanted to see
panamman 13th Aug 2010
@HypnoToad72
To keep this in perspective there are "many" applications that let you clone / recover data from just about any cell phone no mater how simple, not just smart phones.

And of course LEO have had the capability for some time.

Most of the consumer programs are reverse engineered versions of the LEO tools. Many created in jurisdictions where it is legal or unenforcible to prevent the creation of such tools used in violation of US privacy laws.
0 Votes
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Recover all lost data for iphone and android mobile
jaylun Updated - 20th Mar
Recover lost photo,video,music from iphone and Android,For android recover http://www.recovery-iphone.com/android-data-recovery.html

For iphone recover : http://www.recovery-iphone.com/iphone-ipod-ipad-data-recovery.html
0 Votes
+ -
I seemed to have forgotten...
SonofaSailor Updated - 12th Aug 2010
As a network admin for a Bank, please remind me again why I need to ditch my BES infrastructure and start hooking these devices up for every user that brings them to work?

Oh wait, I remember, because Blackberries aren't cool anymore.
0 Votes
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RE: iPhone Recovery Stick could help you find what you never wanted to see
Bookmark71 12th Aug 2010
So, if someone loses their phone whoever finds it could plug this in and bypass a lock code? If so, network admins are going to need to rethink who can use an iPhone for business. Especially banking execs.
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RE: iPhone Recovery Stick could help you find what you never wanted to see
Claud.Cutler@... 12th Aug 2010
@Bookmark71
No.. the stick plugs into the owner's computer.
0 Votes
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No It Plugs into Any PC that the iPhone is plugged into!
i2fun@... 14th Aug 2010
@Claud.Cutler@... Doesn't have to be the owner's computer. You are only reading data of any unencrypted drive. Which all phones give access to. You can use tools that can even image any drive on any memory device unless a Iron Key Memory Stick or SD memory that encrypts data stored requiring and unlock password or phrase.

But the reality is these techniques won't work on CrApple devices. I mean there's AT&T, Apple, iTunes and developers passing on all your personal info there already!
0 Votes
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WOW! The anti-apple drones are buzzing
thofts 12th Aug 2010
All you have to do is say "Apple" or "iPhone" and the haters come out. I still think you are all getting paid to post this BS
0 Votes
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RE: iPhone Recovery Stick could help you find what you never wanted to see
Toque_3D 12th Aug 2010
@thofts Just like all you have to say is Google and all the Micro$oft supporters come out. I suspect all the haters are the ones who are employees of the companies.
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RE: iPhone Recovery Stick could help you find what you never wanted to see
PollyProteus 12th Aug 2010
@thofts - I don't see hate in these posts, what I see are reasonable comments from people who are security conscious (IT people) or don't see themselves becoming rich writing iPhone/iPad apps.

The only antagonistic post I see in this is from you. Seriously.

Pot. Kettle. Black?
0 Votes
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RE: iPhone Recovery Stick could help you find what you never wanted to see
Gavello 12th Aug 2010
@PollyProteus Agreed, not everyone is a fanboi you know.
0 Votes
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Haters?
Peter Perry 12th Aug 2010
@thofts Maybe they're the realist and you just missed your chance to join James Jones Group so you Settled for the Church of Steve Jobs!
0 Votes
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RE: iPhone Recovery Stick could help you find what you never wanted to see
summerwispers 12th Aug 2010
I use a blackberry, but my spouse uses mac, so that means iPhone,I said the same thing, so if I lose my phone anyone who has this can get my info,and he made a very good comment,they can do the same on the blackberry and they don't need a special stick to get the info from a blackberry,all they need is the free software for blackberry to get it,so this isn't really about which phone you use, it is about security risks, I would say to both phones, or any on the market for that matter.
0 Votes
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Hmm
Peter Perry 12th Aug 2010
@summerwispers password protect the Blackberry and Encrypt it...
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RE: iPhone Recovery Stick could help you find what you never wanted to see
YawningGlory 12th Aug 2010
Today's "smart" phones are so untrustworthy, which is why I do all of my secure communications through a series of clicks and whistles, with the occasional low-pitched grunt for emphasis.
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Sounds like a product for gullible idiots
wackoae Updated - 12th Aug 2010
#1- I doubt it works. Nothing in the product's page shows even a hint on how it works. It talks about "if supported data types", but it doesn't even show what is supported.
#2- NO REFUNDS and just a 90-day exchange warranty against defects. Not doing what you thought it could do is not a defect. Since they don't show any supported data types, they can claim you are the defect (ie: problem is user error), not them.

In other words .... this looks more like a SCAM than an actual product.
0 Votes
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Only 200 bucks?!
JoeBob_z 13th Aug 2010
That's only 5 times what it would cost me to buy an external drive dedicated to backing up my iTunes/iPhone data (and on a Mac, too). And it takes 5 times longer to run, too. Such a deal.
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RE: iPhone Recovery Stick could help you find what you never wanted to see
catleya 13th Aug 2010
Why don't all of you stop gas-bagging and get back to work!
0 Votes
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Err, you don't need an expensive gadget to do this
jimfrost 13th Aug 2010
If you have a recent Ubuntu release you can just mount the phone and pull the data off. Don't cost nothin'.
0 Votes
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RE: iPhone Recovery Stick could help you find what you never wanted to see
rob07601 Updated - 14th Aug 2010
I's not about hacking the phone security, it's about spying on a significant other. The USB device can be invisible, plugged into the back of the computer and copy data while the phone is charging. There's no resident program on the PC to arouse suspicion and since iPhones have to dock to a computer to update software it would seem perfectly innocent. I guess this means if your s/o buys you an iPhone and docking cradle you should keep your eyes open for any new USB devices.
They could market it as "The perfect iPhone accessory for that special someone you don't trust."
0 Votes
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RE: iPhone Recovery Stick could help you find what you never wanted to see
max_wedge 21st Aug 2010
You can get most of the data mentioned just by plugging the iphone into a computer and syncing. Photos you can get without itunes installed - via the usb storage that get setup when ypou plug in the phone.

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