Sandstorm Enterprises, Inc.

Other

Basis Technology Corporation

Simson L Garfinkel

Michael S Greenberg

A Samuel Gorton

Daniel J Weber

Computer-based systems and methods enable analysts to manage and explore the information that hard drives and other storage devices or sources of data may contain, and for extracting forensic features and performing cross drive analysis.

Forensic feature extraction and cross drive analysis

A packet interception system intercepts message packets transmitted from a packet source or to a packet destination, and processes them so as to facilitate verification of the contents and the sequence with which the message packets are intercepted, and for storing the processed message packets for later use. The packet interception system generates for each intercepted message packets respective hash values based on the respective intercepted message packet and the hash value generated for the previously-intercepted message packet, or, for the first intercepted message packet, a value that is provided to identify the session. To verify a previously-stored intercepted message packet, the packet interception system, or another device, using the same hash algorithm, can process the sequence of stored intercepted message packets up to and including the intercepted message packet to be verified, to and compare the hash value generated to the previously-generated hash value for each of the message packets. If the sequence of hash values so generated corresponds to the previously-stored sequence, both the integrity and the sequence of message packets is verified. In addition to the hash values, the packet interception system can, for selected ones of the intercepted message packets, generate digital signatures using any convenient encryption algorithm.

Packet interception system including arrangement facilitating authentication of intercepted packets

An arrangement sanitizes a digital data storage unit, such as a disk data storage unit, by encrypting the information that is stored thereon. When the previously-stored information is retrieved from the digital data storage system storage unit, the information is decrypted prior to being provided to the device that requested retrieval of the data. If the digital data storage unit is to be sanitized, the key or keys that used to at least decrypt the data stored on the digital data storage unit are discarded or made unavailable for use in decrypting the encrypted digital data, thereby making the unencrypted data unavailable. Any of a number of types of encryption/decryption methodologies can be used, including a symmetric key methodology, an asymmetric key methodology such as a public key/private key methodology, or any of a number of other encryption/decryption methodologies.

System and method that provides for the efficient and effective sanitizing of disk storage units and the like

In accordance with an adaptive dialing method, a dialer control module controls a modem to place a telephone call to a telephone line and efficiently classify the telephone line, that is, to determine whether a device connected to the telephone line is one or more of a plurality of types of devices, illustratively, a voice telephone, a fax machine or modem, or a data modem. In accordance with the method, the dialer control module can enable the modem to, in one call, determine whether the telephone line is connected to a voice telephone, on the one hand, or a fax machine or modem or a data modem, on the other hand. During the same call if the dialer control module does not determine that the telephone line is connected to a voice telephone, or during a subsequent call if the dialer control module determines that the telephone line is connected to a voice telephone, the dialer control module determines whether the telephone line is also connected to one of a fax machine or modem, on the one hand, or a data modem, on the other hand by enabling the modem to transmit an appropriate tone thereto and determining whether a connection is completed in response. The dialer control module can repeated the last operation using the appropriate tone to determine whether the telephone line is also connected to the other of a fax machine or modem, on the one hand, or a data modem, on the other hand.

Adaptive dialing system and method

A telephone scan-dialing arrangement includes a listener module, at least one dialing control module and at least one dialing module, each dialing module being associated with a respective modem. The listener module receives a command to initiate a scan-dialing operation in connection with a profile that identifies, inter alia, telephone numbers to be dialed and operations to be performed during each call and telephone number selection criteria, and provides the identification of the profile to the dialing control module The dialing control module obtains from the profile a set of telephone numbers to be used during the scan-dialing operation and provides the obtained telephone numbers to respective ones of the dialer modules to be dialed for a call, along with information identifying operations to be performed during the call, as each dialer module finishes its previous call. During each call, each dialer module controls its associated modem to dial the telephone number provided thereto by the dialing control module and perform the specified operations. Each dialer module stores call result information in the profile based on results of the call. During each call the telephone scan-dialing arrangement can determine, if the call is answered, the dialer module can determine characteristics of equipment connected to the called telephone line, including whether the equipment is a voice answering equipment, such as a voice telephone or an automated voice answering system, a fax receiving device or a computer. If the answering equipment is an automated voice answering device or a computer, the telephone scan dialing arrangement can also attempt to penetrate the device or computer to determine the operating system and user name/password combination used to access the device or computer. The a profile is stored in the form of SQL (structured query language) database, and the telephone scan-dialing arrangement can generate reports from the call result information in the profile using templates in HTML, RTF or other convenient format.

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Belmont, MA, United States of America

Simson L Garfinkel