> I keep seeing this suggestion, and it seems not to occur to the proponents that it would simply land someone with destruction-of-evidence charges.
Only if someone can prove the data was there in the first place.
Only if someone can prove the data was there in the first place.
If I put in my password and you get back a reset phone with no personal data whatever, then it's rather obvious that I've wiped it (eg my wallpaper picture has likely reset from my personal taste to the system default). So now you don't have the evidence to convict me of what you suspected me for, but you can bring another charge, and DoE charges will cause most people to assume that the original accusation/suspicion was well founded. If you are able to prove it by other means I'll get less sympathy from a jury and likely a much higher penalty.