The hackers at Cellebrite Mobile Synchronization Ltd., the forensics unit of a little-known Japanese pinball company, are fast becoming the go-to guys when law enforcement needs to unlock smartphones. Its group chief has plans to keep the firm on the front lines against terrorism.
In his first interview since Sun Corp. was thrust into the spotlight in the legal tussle between Apple Inc. and U.S. law enforcement over the hacking of an iPhone, Chief Executive Officer Masanori Yamaguchi says his company wants to expand its work countering tech-savvy terrorists. Yamaguchi says he's willing to spend as much as ¥20 billion ($183 million) to acquire or merge with companies to expand its sought-after data extraction business.
"Demand will never go away," Yamaguchi, 67, said from the company's headquarters in Aichi Prefecture. "Extracting mobile phone data is the fastest way to solve crimes nowadays."