SBF’s Parents Could not be Tracked Via Spyware

Surveillance software was to be installed in the smartphones of Sam Bankman-Fried’s parents.
SBF’s legal team was looking for ways to comply and asked for extensions for the same reasons.

The former crypto white knight, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), is accused of multiple counts related to the infamous FTX-saga. He pleaded not guilty to all eight counts of allegations and is now kept under house arrest on a $250,000 bond. SBF’s bail conditions require installing surveillance software on parents’ smartphones, but his lawyers cannot comply.

Sam Bankman-Fried’s Bail Conditions

SBF’s lawyers are facing specific issues complying with the court’s required bail conditions. They were required to install software on the smartphones of SBF’s parents, which would take pictures every five minutes, so they could constantly monitor who was using them.

Attorney Mark Cohen and Christian Everdell argued about a recent discovery regarding installing the monitoring software on the smartphones purchased by his parents. As the order requires, it fails to photograph the device’s user every five minutes automatically.

As the details regarding the smartphone model were not disclosed, modern devices are running on iOS, Google Android, or the privacy-focused operating system GrapheneOS. All have enhanced their security measures, which involve app sandboxing.

Sandboxing refers to a security practice in mobile phones that isolates applications in specific restricted environments. This protects the device’s operating system and data from supposed harm. It creates a “safe zone” for apps and limits the impact of vulnerabilities and malicious software.

In October 2022, Apple revealed a new lockdown mode for iOS 16, iPadOS 16, and macOS Venture. This update is an optimal security feature designed to face advanced digital threats by limiting the device’s functionality. Web browsing is restricted, and inbound FaceTime calls are blocked, thereby reducing the exposure of the spyware.

Steven Walbroehl, co-founder and CTO at blockchain cybersecurity firm Halborn said to a crypto media outlet, “If they wanted to do this, they could either force the use of a [Android-based] device and employ a rootkit to install a custom app, or develop an application that complies with Apple’s App Store terms and conditions.”

Another possible alternative is jailbreaking the device to bypass the operating system’s restrictions. However, jailbreaking a device is not illegal, but it violets Apple’s terms of service and violates the warranty.

The defense is exploring alternative solutions that could monitor SBF’s parent’s cell phones as the order requires. A letter was sent to the presiding Judge, Lewis Kaplan, by Sam’s legal team requesting the extension till April 21, 2023, for order compliance.

This is the third consecutive request filed by the defense after the order was initiated on March 28, 2023. Previous extensions were given on April 4 and April 11, 2023. Judge Kaplan has approved the request, and till a workable solution to follow the order, SBF’s attorneys asked that his parents be allowed to use their existing cell phones.

Attorneys have reported finding a solution but would need time until this week’s end to conduct further tests regarding the monitoring software’s capabilities.