Lazybit

After another development cycle, SIM Explorer 1.2 is finally here, having a lot of new things under the hood and on the surface. At the moment we can firmly say that it is the best SIM card forensic tool on the market. The new version has several key-improvements that make it a great instrument for those who examine SIM cards for a living.

The changelog can be found in the end of the article, while the story itself will highlight some of the new features.

SIM card hash
SIM Explorer will now compute the hash of the SIM card, this way you can tell whether the card was changed or not since the last time you analyzed it. The hashing algorithm we use is SHA-1, generating a 160-bit digest.

It takes into account the contents of the SIM card's files, as well as their names and properties - all of this is seen as a continuous stream of data, which is then hashed. The hash is displayed in the lower left corner of the window.

Side by side SIM card comparison

This new dialog is one of the coolest new features in the new SIM Explorer. The structure of two SIM cards is represented as a tree, where each directory file and elementary file is marked with a colour:

• green - files match by name and by content
• yellow - files match by name but have a different content
• red - the file does not exist on the other SIM card
• blue - the file exists on both cards but has different properties

When you click on a file on one panel, SIM Explorer will select the same file on the other card (if it exists). In the middle you see the contents of each file, the following aids are available:

• synchronized scrolling of both sides
• the different bytes are highlighted with red, which allows you to visually compare the files much quicker
• the offset is on the left, allowing you to easily exchange data with colleagues - tell them where to look

Generate printable reports
SIM Explorer is now able to generate a plain-text report that contains details about a SIM card. This can be used when a hard-copy of the data is needed, alternatively this can be used for data exchange with colleagues or partners who do not have SIM Explorer or a computer to run it on. Finally, nothing beats the feeling of holding paper in your hand.

.sim file association
SIM Explorer is now associated with .sim files, you can double click one and the program will open it for you. The icon for such files looks like this:

Find SIM backup

With this tool you can search for .sim files and reveal which other SIM card images you saved refer to the same card you are analyzing at the moment. How it works:

• the search is done by ATR, if it is the same, the card will be shown in the list of results
• further, the hash is compared as well; the result is seen in the icon near the file name (green - identical, yellow - different)
• you also see when the SIM file was created and modified - thus you can compare the card with itself at an earlier date
• for your convenience, there are several buttons for quick access of functions - compare SIM, restore SIM, open SIM

Unlike the previous version, the new SIM Explorer is much better adapted to your needs. Features such as the side by side visual comparison make it easy to understand how a SIM card changed with time; while the ability to save a card to a .sim file or print a report make data exchange with colleagues or law enforcement agencies a simple process.

We are committed to making it even better. Stay tuned for the next releases.

Version 1.2:

+ Side by side visual SIM card comparison with highlighting
+ Generate printable SIM card report
+ Compute SIM hash
+ SIM Explorer is associated with .sim files
+ Save card's ATM to .sim file
+ Save proactive commands to .sim file
+ New icons in the program's interface, as well as other UI improvements
+ Improved Unicode SMS support
+ Command line argument to open a file automatically
+ Find SIM by ATR
+ Restructured main menu in the program
+ Improved search function