IMEI
International Mobile Equipment Identity
Internationale Mobilfunk-Geräte-Kennung
The IMEI is the typically 15-digit, globally unique identifier of a mobile device — it identifies the device itself, not the connection or the person. In mobile forensics it serves for unambiguous device attribution, for instance when reconciling exhibits with connection data. On most devices it can be retrieved via a short key sequence.
History & facts. As GSM mobile telephony spread, a device-side identifier became necessary to identify handsets independently of the interchangeable SIM. The IMEI is structured, among other things, into a vendor-related part (Type Allocation Code) and a device-specific serial number; its structure and allocation are internationally regulated. Via IMEI block lists, stolen devices can be blocked at the network level.
Outlook & recommendation. For mobile forensics the IMEI is a central anchor linking a physical device to network records. At the same time it is no tamper-proof evidence: on manipulated devices it can be altered. In forensic practice the IMEI should therefore be documented and reconciled against further artefacts, rather than treated in isolation as proof of identity — a field in which NEOSEC operates forensically.