Ethical Hacking News
A recent discovery by Lookout has shed light on a mobile forensics tool called Massistant, developed by Meiya Pico, which secretly extracts SMS, GPS data, images, audio, contacts, and phone services from confiscated devices. The implications are significant, particularly given China's history of mass surveillance on its citizens.
Massistant, a mobile forensics tool developed by Meiya Pico (SDIC Intelligence Xiamen Information Co., Ltd.), allows Chinese law enforcement agencies to extract SMS, GPS data, images, audio, contacts, and phone services from confiscated devices. The tool requires physical access to the device and can collect data with minimal user interaction, raising concerns about privacy and surveillance. Massistant is compatible with both Android and iOS devices, expanding China's surveillance capabilities across multiple platforms. The discovery highlights China's ongoing efforts to expand its surveillance capabilities, posing significant implications for global cybersecurity and individual travelers to mainland China.
China's latest foray into the realm of mobile forensics has sparked a flurry of concern among cybersecurity enthusiasts and experts, as a recent discovery sheds light on the capabilities of a tool known as Massistant. Developed by a Chinese company called SDIC Intelligence Xiamen Information Co., Ltd., also formerly known as Meiya Pico, this mobile forensics tool has been found to secretly extract SMS, GPS data, images, audio, contacts, and phone services from confiscated mobile devices in China.
According to a report published by Lookout, a leading cybersecurity firm, Massistant is believed to be a successor of MFSocket, another mobile forensics tool developed by the same company. This new tool works in conjunction with a corresponding desktop software, allowing for seamless access to the device's GPS location data, SMS messages, images, audio, contacts, and phone services.
Kristina Balaam, a security researcher at Lookout, shed light on this new development, stating that Meiya Pico maintains partnerships with domestic and international law enforcement partners, both as a surveillance hardware and software provider, as well as through training programs for law enforcement personnel. This indicates that the Massistant tool is likely used by Chinese law enforcement agencies to gather intelligence from individuals whose mobile devices have been confiscated at border checkpoints.
The report highlights that Massistant requires physical access to the device in order to install the application, making it possible for law enforcement authorities to collect data from confiscated devices. The tool prompts users to grant permissions to access sensitive data after which no further interaction is required. Furthermore, if a user attempts to exit the application, they receive a notice that the application is in 'get data' mode and exiting would result in some error.
The implications of this new development are far-reaching, particularly given China's history of conducting mass surveillance on its citizens. The report also notes that Meiya Pico has expanded on MFSocket's features by including the ability to connect to a phone using the Android Debug Bridge (ADB) over Wi-Fi and to download additional files to the device.
In addition to its Android capabilities, Massistant is also shown to be compatible with iPhones, suggesting that Chinese authorities are working towards expanding their surveillance capabilities across multiple platforms. The company has filed patents related to gathering evidence from both Android and iOS devices, including voiceprints for internet-related cases.
The discovery of this new mobile forensics tool has significant implications for global cybersecurity, as it highlights the ongoing efforts by China's law enforcement agencies to expand their surveillance capabilities. This development also underscores the need for increased vigilance among individuals traveling to or within mainland China, where there is a high risk of having their confidential mobile data acquired by state police.
Furthermore, this new tool is not an isolated incident in the realm of Chinese surveillance efforts. In December 2017, The Wall Street Journal reported that Meiya Pico worked with police officials in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region to scan smartphones for terrorism-related content by plugging them into a handheld device. Four years later, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Meiya Pico for enabling the "biometric surveillance and tracking of ethnic and religious minorities in China, particularly the predominantly Muslim Uyghur minority in Xinjiang."
The disclosure comes as a couple of months after Lookout unearthed another spyware called EagleMsgSpy that's suspected to be used by Chinese police departments as a lawful intercept tool to gather a wide range of information from mobile devices.
In conclusion, this recent discovery sheds light on the capabilities of Massistant, a mobile forensics tool developed by Meiya Pico. The implications of this new development are far-reaching, particularly given China's history of conducting mass surveillance on its citizens. As global cybersecurity continues to evolve, it is essential for individuals and governments alike to remain vigilant in the face of emerging threats from China.
Related Information:
https://www.ethicalhackingnews.com/articles/Cybersecurity-Alert-Chinas-Massistant-Tool-Exposes-Vulnerability-in-Mobile-Forensics-ehn.shtml
https://thehackernews.com/2025/07/chinas-massistant-tool-secretly.html
Published: Fri Jul 18 15:58:26 2025 by llama3.2 3B Q4_K_M
