Break Into Your Locked Android Device

To prevent unwanted access to your phone, it is always wise to enable certain security measures. By design, Android devices come with very helpful security features that you can set up to protect your device from prying eyes. Two of the most commonly used security measures are the pattern lock and the personal identification number (PIN). Unfortunately, you may be locked out of your own Android device due to a forgotten password or pattern lock. While being locked out of your Android device can be frustrating, it is only a minor setback as you can easily bypass these security measures and break into your Android device so you can use it again.

Steps

Using Android Device Manager

  1. Visit the Android Device Manager website or app on another computer or device. Point your web browser to google.com/android/devicemanager or download the Android Device Manager app on another Android device. This method should work for virtually any Android device that was purchased in the past few years, as long as you had associated it with your Google account.[1]
  2. Sign in to your Google account. You will be prompted to enter in your Google account log-in credentials. Be sure you enter in the credentials associated with your phone if you have multiple Google accounts.
  3. Click Lock underneath your device. If you have multiple Android devices, they will all be listed here. From the options on the left side of the screen underneath your device name, you will see three options: Ring, Lock, and Erase. Clicking Lock, although counter-intuitive, will allow you to set up a temporary password on your device that will override any pattern lock or PIN number.
  4. Create a new password. Enter in some sort of password that you will use to unlock your Android device. Make sure to remember this password by writing it down somewhere.
    • You will be asked to confirm the password as well.
  5. Click Lock to apply the new password. After you have entered the appropriate information, click the Lock button in the bottom right of the pop-up window. If successful, you will see a notification pop up beneath the Ring, Lock, and Erase options.
  6. Enter in the new password on your device. On the locked screen, enter in the password you just created. You should now be granted access to your locked device. You may have to wait up to five minutes for your new password to take effect.

Bypassing Your Pattern Lock (Android 4.4 and Below)

  1. Perform five failed logins. In order to access the lock screen reset options, you'll need to fail the login five times. Make sure to pass through at least four points each time you attempt to fail the login. This only works if you use a Pattern Lock.
  2. Tap "Forgot Pattern?" at the bottom of the screen. This will open the bypass screen.
  3. Enter your backup PIN. If you can remember your backup PIN that you created when you set up your pattern, enter it now to unlock the device. If you don't remember the PIN, you can still unlock it with your Google account.
  4. Enter your Google account information to unlock the device. You can sign in with your Google account to bypass the lock, as long as it is the same Google account that is associated with the device.

Using Samsung's Find My Mobile Tool (Samsung Phones)

  1. Visit Samsung's "Find My Mobile" site if you have a Samsung phone. Visit findmymobile.samsung.com/. If you own a Samsung phone, such as the Galaxy S4, you have access to a tool called Find My Mobile. In addition to giving you another option to unlock your phone, this tool also lets you control much of your phone without actually using your phone.
    • Note that this method will only work if you have already registered your phone with this tool and are connected to the internet over Wi-Fi or mobile network.
    • Your phone will likely say Samsung somewhere on its body if it is a Samsung phone.
  2. Sign in to your Samsung account. Enter in the credentials for your previously created Samsung account and sign in.
    • Try recovering your login credentials if you cannot remember them.
  3. Unlock your phone. On the left side of the window, you will see your registered phone along with a list of options beneath it. Find and click on the Unlock my screen option underneath the Protect my device header.
  4. Access your phone. After a short time, your screen should now be unlocked and you will have full access to your phone.
    • It is recommended that you set up a new screen lock in your system settings immediately after accessing your phone.

Disabling the Lock Screen Using the Android SDK

  1. Download the Android SDK. Go to this link: http://developer.android.com/sdk/index.html#Other to download, install, and extract the appropriate Android SDK.[2]
    • Note that this method will only work if you have previously enabled USB debugging in the Android device's Developer menu. It also requires that you have previously allowed your Android device to connect to your computer via ADB. This method will only work if you have done these things previously before being locked out.
  2. Plug your phone in to your computer. Connect your phone to your computer via USB.
  3. Open your ADB installation directory. This is the folder that ADB has been installed to. This is usually the "Tools" folder in the SDK installation directory. Use Windows Explorer to navigate to this folder.
  4. Hold ⇧ Shift and right-click in the ADB folder. Select "Open command window here." This will launch the Command Prompt.
  5. Enter the command to unlock your screen. Type adb shell rm /data/system/gesture.key into the command line and press ↵ Enter.
  6. Disconnect and restart your phone. After typing the command, unplug your phone and restart to hopefully see no pattern lock on your phone. You should have full access.
    • Be sure to set a new lock immediately after gaining access. Your old password will be restored when the phone reboots unless you set a new one.

Factory Resetting the Device

  1. Perform this as a last-ditch effort. A factory reset will wipe out all the data on the device, reverting it to its factory state (the state it was in when you bought it).[3]
    • This will delete all of the data on the device, and should only be used as a last resort if you can't bypass your lock screen.
    • If you're trying to bypass someone else's lock screen, you'll be out of luck if the phone is running 5.1 or later. Android 5.1 introduced Device Protection, which requires logging in with the original Google account after the device has been wiped. This is to prevent a thief from using the phone after stealing it.
  2. Turn off your device. Just press down on the Power button and select “Power off” from the menu that pops up.
    • Alternatively, you can also just hold down the Power button for five seconds until your device powers off.
  3. Press and hold the Power and Volume Up buttons. If your device has a Home button, such as a Samsung Galaxy device, press and hold the Volume Up button, the Home button, and the Power button. Continue holding the buttons until your see the Android Recovery logo.
  4. Use the Volume Down button to select "Recovery mode." Press the Power button to select it, which reboot your device and enter Recovery mode.
  5. Press the Volume Down button to select "wipe data / factory reset." Press the Power button to select this option.
  6. Use the Volume buttons to select "yes" and press Power. This will confirm that you want to erase all of the data on the device and reset it. The reset process will likely take 20-30 minutes.
  7. Setup your device as new. Once the reset is complete, you'll be taken through the device setup process. You can log back in with your Google account to restore most of your settings.
    • If the device is running Android 5.1 or later, you'll need to enter the original Google account and password to unlock the device. This is to prevent theft.

Overloading the Password Lock Screen (5.0 - 5.1.1)

  1. Use this method to bypass a password lock on certain Android devices. Android versions 5.0 - 5.1.1 contained an exploit that could be used to bypass a password lock screen. This only works for password locks (not PIN or pattern), and may not work on all devices running those versions of Android.
  2. Tap the "Emergency Call" option on the password lock screen. This will open the phone's dialer.
  3. Enter ten asterisks using the dialer.
  4. Double-tap the asterisks to select them. A new menu will appear at the top of the screen.
  5. Tap "Copy" to copy the ten asterisks.
  6. Tap the end of the asterisks and select "Paste." This will paste the ten asterisks to the end, essentially doubling the amount.
  7. Copy and paste asterisks until you no longer can. This may take a little while.
  8. Return to the Lock Screen and open the Camera shortcut. You can open this by swiping in from the bottom corner.
  9. Open the Notification Panel and tap the Settings button. You'll be prompted to enter a password.
  10. Long-press the password field and select "Paste." This will paste a bunch of asterisks into the field.
  11. Repeat this process until the lock screen crashes. After pasting enough characters, the lock screen will crash, allowing you to access your device.[4]

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://trendblog.net/how-to-bypass-android-phone-lock-screen-pattern-pin-password/
  2. ↑ http://www.matthewhollander.com/locked-out-of-your-android-phone/
  3. ↑ http://source.android.com/devices/tech/security/best-practices.html
  4. ↑ http://android.wonderhowto.com/how-to/7-ways-bypass-androids-secured-lock-screen-0165540/
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