Learning Android Forensics - Second Edition

Rooting a locked boot loader

When the boot loader is locked and cannot be unlocked through any available means, rooting the device requires finding a security flaw that can be exploited. But before that, it is important to identify the type of boot loader lock. It can vary depending on the manufacturer and software version. With some mobiles, fastboot access may not be allowed, but you can still flash using the manufacturer's proprietary flashing protocol, such as Samsung ODIN. Some devices enforce signature verification on selected partitions only, such as boot and recovery. Hence, it may not be possible to boot into custom recovery. However, you can still modify the factory image to include su binary, as explained in the previous section. ...