Device factory resets are common troubleshooting fixes when a phone or device has significant software issues. Factory resets allow users to start from scratch and eliminate glitches or personal data. Resets frequently happen when ownership of a device is being transferred, like a trade-in or sale on the secondhand market.

Most resets occur for perfectly innocent reasons like these. However, a recent or repeated factory reset could indicate suspicious or fraudulent mobile activity. This blog post delves into the nuanced world of factory reset detection, exploring how identifying recent resets can serve as a vital indicator of unusual or potentially malicious behavior.

What is a Mobile Device Factory Reset?

A factory reset or hard reset is a process that returns a device to its original manufacturer settings. This reset erases all data, applications, and configurations, reverting the device to its state at first power-on. The primary purpose of a factory reset is to restore the device's software to its original condition, eliminating any issues or corruption that may have occurred over time. It's a powerful tool for clearing persistent software problems, removing viruses or malware, and deleting personal data.

Why Perform a Factory Reset?

Factory resets are performed for various reasons, each aiming to resolve different issues or prepare the device for a new phase of use:

Troubleshooting

Devices sometimes develop software problems that cause crashes, slowness, or unexpected restarts. A factory reset can often resolve these issues by removing any corrupted files or settings that may be causing the device to behave unpredictably. IT professionals regularly recommend factory resets as a troubleshooting step when problems arise.

Malware Removal

If conventional antivirus methods cannot remove a virus or malware infecting a device, you may need a factory reset to eradicate the malicious software.

Selling or Transferring Ownership

Before selling or giving away a device, performing a factory reset is crucial to remove personal information and ensure the new owner starts with a clean slate. Usually, the original owner or the second-hand electronics dealers perform this to protect the previous owner's privacy and security.

Performance Improvement

Over time, devices can become cluttered with unused apps, files, and residual data, leading to sluggish performance. A factory reset can rejuvenate a device by clearing this clutter and restoring its original performance.

Fresh Start

Sometimes, users opt for a factory reset to enjoy a fresh start. It's particularly appealing when upgrading to a newer operating system version or when the device feels overloaded with apps and data.

When Do Factory Resets Become Suspicious?

While factory resets can have multiple legitimate uses, they have also become a tool for fraudsters. Returning a device to its original settings gains anonymity and a clean slate, facilitating the creation of new accounts on various platforms. This technique is useful for exploiting signup bonuses and referral incentives or conducting unauthorized transactions without being traced back to their previous activities.

Resetting devices between creating accounts or after significant events help obscure digital footprints, making it challenging for fraud detection systems to identify and link these accounts to a single individual. However, the timing of the last factory reset for a device can provide some clues.

4 Red Flags of Suspicious Factory Resets

While the timing of a factory reset alone should not be used as the only determining factor to identify fraud, particular scenarios should raise red flags:

• If someone uses a mobile device to access a site extremely shortly after a factory reset, it could signal potential fraudulent behavior. This behavior can include bypassing security measures or disguising user identity to avoid detection and performing unauthorized activities.
• A pattern of frequent resets associated with a single account or device often points to an effort to remove evidence of unauthorized actions or reset trial periods.
• Resets occurring after notable events such as transactions or the imposition of account bans may signal attempts to eliminate evidence of fraud or dodge further examination.
• The presence of multiple active devices undergoing resets in a short time frame could also indicate a coordinated fraud attempt across various devices.

Noticing these patterns can be helpful information when developing security processes and fraud detection mechanisms.

Detecting “Factory Reset Time” with Fingerprint

Determining the last factory reset date of a mobile device accessing services can provide valuable insights when evaluating suspicious activity during a broader assessment. Fingerprint's Device Intelligence Platform offers an effortless way to obtain this timestamp through our Smart Signals for mobile devices. By making a simple API call, you can quickly retrieve the user's last factory reset time and other valuable signals such as VPN detection, cloned app detection, and jailbroken device detection.

These signals complement existing security and fraud detection measures, offering additional insights to protect businesses from fraud. You can detect potentially suspicious behavior by considering multiple signals, including the factory reset time. Furthermore, you can make informed decisions, whether enhancing the experience for trusted visitors or introducing measures to prevent fraud, ensuring a seamless and secure environment.

Conclusion

People often use factory resets in the life cycle of a device for troubleshooting and performance improvement, but they can also use them for fraudulent activities. Noticing patterns of suspicious reset behavior can provide insights into potential security threats. Determining the last reset date of a device through platforms like Fingerprint's Device Intelligence Platform can enhance existing security measures and aid in detecting potentially malicious behavior.

To discover how Fingerprint Smart Signals can assist you in combating fraud, contact our team. Or you can try out our factory reset signal by starting a free trial.