What happens when you're found + digital footprint

[BoomBang101]

Hopefully this thread doesn't give people the wrong idea lmao. A big part of my preparation process for CTB are the precautionary measures needed with devices... I'm naturally a VERY paranoid person, but I've never been told specifically what law enforcement wants to look for when discovering a suicide, so I'm not even sure if this matters or not, to be quite honest.

Assuming there's no reason to suspect anyone else is linked to my death...

- Should I expect my phone and/or computer to be searched through in any capacity? It just sounds unflattering for that to happen.
- Is it a good practice to clear browsing data, delete accounts etc.? Seems paradoxical - clearing your traces is gonna make people wonder WHY your traces are cleared. Quite simply, I just don't want embarrassing/cringey shit to surface
- Does location matter? I'm likely relying on a time-sensitive method, so it's desirable to be far away, but I fear that being discovered in a strange location would only raise more questions.


I've seen similar threads to this, but answers vary... for example, some have said to destroy hard drives, etc., but I feel as though this would just cause further problems and raise even MORE questions.

 

[novem]

Are you afraid to be punished or interrogated by police after you are gone?

 

[Forever Sleep]

Yeah- I've had that exact thought- a wiped device surely looks more suspicious in a way...

I don't have anything criminally interesting to look at but I suppose I've wondered if they look for where you might have bought stuff for your method and sites like this. I don't want either getting any heat.

Thinking I may self ban from here, or at least log out and clear browser history. Plus, use a long password to lock my phone and computer. I'm sure they CAN bypass it all but I'm assuming- with a hand written suicide note, ID and other stuff- they may not bother investigating that much. It's not like I'm young. I think they likely take more interest in youngsters- where did they find the information, who sold them the stuff and were they coerced?

I guess for your plan- so long as it clearly looks like a self inflicted act, maybe they won't investigate that much. I suppose you could explain why you are in a different location in your note- if you think this will seem suspicious.

 

[western_heart]

All my devices are encrypted, and I already disabled all of the cloud recovery features, so no, I won't be wiping anything. If I survived an attempt I would be even more lost without my data. No one besides me will be able to get in, my passwords aren't written down.

Maybe I'll turn off activation lock so that the devices can be re-used. Idk what Apple's policy is on removing the lock when the device owner is deceased. I don't have anyone designated as a legacy contact.

 

[AreWeWinning]

On a computer, you can set up full disk encryption. With a reasonable passphrase, it's virtually impossible to break. All the data will remain private.

On the phone, you can do a factory reset, or set a longer (e.g. 6 digits) passcode. With factory reset, the phone will be usable later. While if you lock it, the phone may become unusable, depending on the model.

Maybe I'll turn off activation lock so that the devices can be re-used. Idk what Apple's policy is on removing the lock when the device owner is deceased. I don't have anyone designated as a legacy contact.

Iphones can be tricky. If you don't sign out of iCloud, it will be impossible to use the phone with iCloud ever again. There is a possibility to set up 'legacy contact' in case of the death of the owner, but I don't know how that works…

But I think it's true for most phones, Apple or Android. If the passcode is forgotten, it can be very difficult to access the phone again. With Iphones, the difference is that in addition to the passcode, there is also the Apple ID or iCloud thing. So, it's not enough to know the passcode. The Apple ID should be logged out on the phone too. A factory reset takes care of all these, I believe.

 

[sevenkarmas]

If they perform a 'real' investigation, they'll just go to your ISP and request all traffic to and from your IP address for a defined period. That includes your phone service provider. If you leave a note, it may not be as thorough.

 

[Huntfish34]

Agreed, if they Really wanna know... They can get into your phone / PC using different methods. Regardless of what kind of security / password.... you use.

 

[AreWeWinning]

If they perform a 'real' investigation, they'll just go to your ISP and request all traffic to and from your IP address for a defined period. That includes your phone service provider. If you leave a note, it may not be as thorough.

Your ISP can log what websites you accessed at what time, but they can't see everything you did on those sites due to end-to-end encryption, which is standard nowadays and used by all websites. They can't see your username, password, your messages, your posts etc. They need to contact the owner of the website to get these. If a website doesn't use encryption, your browser warns you and won't let you access the site by default.

We just want some privacy. We are not covering up a crime or defending against a major investigation. If it's an obvious suicide, I doubt the police will spend the money and resources to dig too deep. And it's not like anyone can just request or access these data either! Not even your family. In most countries, there are laws to protect your privacy.

Agreed, if they Really wanna know... They can get into your phone / PC using different methods. Regardless of what kind of security / password.... you use.

It's not exactly correct. It's not like they can just take your device and access all the data in a well-equipped lab at the press of a button, like in the movies. You would be amazed how secure many of the commonly used technologies are.

The problem is usually that people are not technically adept enough to understand what options they have, and the possible advantages and limitations of those choices. Even though some of these options are super easy to set up and provide greater security than you'll ever need.

 

[BillyBob]

Use to be paranoid, still have some disks encrypted. I have actually written my password in a note for my parents to use my computer as I am running a server for them.
Besides that my phone has the option that after 15 failed attempts to unlock it, it will wipe its self completely or factory reset.

My death will be away from the house where I live so there will be not need hopefully for them to check my pc at all.
Since it will be a suicide there honestly is no need to check the devices so as long as they are not around for them to use an evidence then I see no harm.

 

[sevenkarmas]

Your ISP can log what websites you accessed at what time, but they can't see everything you did on those sites due to end-to-end encryption, which is standard nowadays and used by all websites. They can't see your username, password, your messages, your posts etc. They need to contact the owner of the website to get these. If a website doesn't use encryption, your browser warns you and won't let you access the site by default.

We just want some privacy. We are not covering up a crime or defending against a major investigation. If it's an obvious suicide, I doubt the police will spend the money and resources to dig too deep. And it's not like anyone can just request or access these data either! Not even your family. In most countries, there are laws to protect your privacy.

They don't need to see necessarily what you accessed. For example, if you came to SaSu, there's inference as to what you were doing. Plus, many websites will provide some indication in the URL. Go to Pornhub or any other adult site. Navigate to a video. Look at the URL. For that matter, look at the URL for this page. It tells you the thread name and the post number.
I'll also add, tech companies are not above selling out to law enforcement. Look up Microsoft COFEE. In the case of the iPhone, the FBI was able to access the San Bernadino shooter's iPhone because the cyber security company they hired was able to exploit third party software to brute force the password. https://www.theverge.com/2021/4/14/22383957/fbi-san-bernadino-iphone-hack-shooting-investigation

I'm not saying don't take the minimum precautions, but at the end of the day, everything can be broken into. It just depends on how motivated law enforcement is to gain access. As I stated earlier, it just depends on the level of investigation.

 

[Wannagonow]

Like most of us, my death will be unattended, so the police will be coming to see me. I'm not leaving any notes or msgs of any kind- so maybe they will look at my phone. I really don't care. There's nothing super private or embarrassing there. And after all, I will be gone- so it won't matter to me.

I'm too old to know how to put super protective stuff on my phone, and I have no computer (told you I was old). I may clear my search history. I will delete my acct here- really just to protect integrity of site and it's members.

OP- I think we all need to work under the theory that our electronic stuff may be looked at. It's probably a good idea to clear or delete anything that concerns you- if only so you worry less. Whether you CTB at home or somewhere else, it will be investigated on some level. I would say do what makes you feel comfortable. It will help you on your journey. My best to you.

 

[BoomBang101]

They don't need to see necessarily what you accessed. For example, if you came to SaSu, there's inference as to what you were doing. Plus, many websites will provide some indication in the URL. Go to Pornhub or any other adult site. Navigate to a video. Look at the URL. For that matter, look at the URL for this page. It tells you the thread name and the post number.
I'll also add, tech companies are not above selling out to law enforcement. Look up Microsoft COFEE. In the case of the iPhone, the FBI was able to access the San Bernadino shooter's iPhone because the cyber security company they hired was able to exploit third party software to brute force the password. https://www.theverge.com/2021/4/14/22383957/fbi-san-bernadino-iphone-hack-shooting-investigation

I'm not saying don't take the minimum precautions, but at the end of the day, everything can be broken into. It just depends on how motivated law enforcement is to gain access. As I stated earlier, it just depends on the level of investigation.

Thank you and everyone in this thread for your help. The understanding nature of this community blows my mind in the best way possible. It's so comforting.

I would assume in the case of an obvious suicide, the main thing motivating them to investigate further would be the presence of illegal drugs, right? I'm not sure what else they'd care about. Either way, if they did investigate, you're saying I should mainly expect them to obtain logs from my ISP? I was expecting things like text messages and Google drives to be searched through. I come from a sheltered upbringing and don't really grasp how "things work," I guess you could say.

I can certainly live with the ISP logs lol, the worst they'll see is me being on here. I'm just worried that if I did end up choosing a CTB method that isn't super straightforward, it could potentially implicate/drag other people into my own mess. And that's not my intention at all, I'm just trying to get the hell off this earth