Bugbane is an open-source Android application that simplifies consensual forensics by building on Amnesty TechLab's Mobile Verification Toolkit (MVT). Bugbane makes MVT's capabilities accessible to everyone through a user-friendly interface, allowing users to self-test in just a few minutes without needing a second device. It also enables periodic data acquisitions, supporting the analysis of past acquisitions with updated IoCs in an "acquire-now, detect-later" workflow. Bugbane reliably extracts and decodes key artifacts like installed apps, backups, and system logs, and allows users users to export AndroidQF-compatible age-encrypted archives.
The goal is to expand access and usage, helping users and supporting organizations work more efficiently, and reaching a broader audience, including less-technical individuals and communities currently outside civil-society support. In the longer term, Bugbane aims to strengthen the collection of open threat intelligence that can be shared with researchers, analysts, and civil-society organizations.