MobileMobile & IoT ForensicsiOS ForensicsBFU and AFU states, iTunes and Finder backups, the keychain and iLEAPP for iPhone casesMagnet Forensics
Magnet Graykey
Graykey is Magnet Forensics' device access product for locked iOS and Android handsets. Magnet sells it only to public safety agencies in selected countries and vets every enquiry through an agency email address.
PlatformCommercialCurrent
Profile
- Manufacturer
- Magnet Forensics
- Category
- Mobile forensics
- Product type
- Platform
- Platforms
- Not stated by the manufacturer
- Licensing
- Commercial
- Product status
- Current
- Educational level
- Advanced
- Last verified
- 2 November 2026
Magnet's page title reads Magnet Graykey, with a lower-case k, which is followed here. The page states that Graykey is restricted to select countries, is not available to the private sector and that enquiries need an agency-issued email. No host platform is stated. This profile deliberately avoids operational detail.
What Magnet Graykey is
Graykey came to Magnet Forensics through its combination with Grayshift, the company that built it. Magnet now writes the name as Graykey. Its purpose is narrow and sensitive: to gain access to a locked phone and extract its data when an agency has the legal authority to do so. Magnet's page says the system is not available to the private sector, is restricted to select countries and that submissions are checked before anyone from the company responds. A student or a private laboratory in India cannot buy it. This profile describes it only so that learners understand where it sits in an agency workflow.
The page describes extractions from iOS and Android, including legacy Android devices. It mentions decryption of the iOS keychain and Android keystore to reach stored passwords and app data, a preservation mode (Graykey Preserve) that protects an extraction from reboot timers while the device waits for its turn and Graykey Fastrak, which allows several devices to be processed at once across workstations. The output goes into Magnet Axiom for analysis. What the tool cannot change is the legal and procedural frame: the order that authorises the examination, the record of the device's state before and after and the lab's decision on who may run such work.
Primary applications
Where it is used
- Lawful access to locked iOS and Android devices in agency investigations
- Preserving a seized device's state until an authorised extraction can be run
- Decrypting keychain and keystore data to reach passwords and app data after access
- Processing several devices at once in a high-volume agency unit
- Feeding extractions into Magnet Axiom for decoding and reporting
Who uses it
- Central and state agencies with a legal mandate for device access
- Laboratory managers who set the governance for advanced access work
- Prosecutors who need to understand how an extraction was obtained
- Students of the law and procedure around device access
Capabilities and limits
Major capabilities
- Access and extraction for supported iOS and Android devices
- Decryption of iOS keychain and Android keystore data
- Graykey Preserve and Evidence Preservation Mode to protect extractions from reboot timers
- Graykey Fastrak for simultaneous extraction from multiple devices
- Integration with Magnet Axiom for processing and analysis
- Online licences through Magnet Autokey and Magnet One in the countries Magnet names
Technical limitations
- Sold only to public safety agencies in selected countries; not available to the private sector or to students
- Support for a given model and operating system version changes with vendor and manufacturer updates and is never guaranteed
- An access attempt is an action on the evidence and must be documented, including failures
- Legal authority must exist before any attempt; without it the act is an offence in India as elsewhere
- Magnet's page does not state the host platform or deployment hardware
Learning with DFRTI
Independent professional education covering the principles and workflows of Magnet Graykey. DFRTI is not a vendor training centre and its courses are not vendor certifications.
Before you learn it
- Indian procedural law on seizure and examination of devices
- Mobile device security states and why a locked phone limits extraction
- Evidence preservation, including isolation and power handling of seized phones
Disciplines
Related tools
- Cellebrite PremiumPremium is Cellebrite's advanced access capability for locked and encrypted handsets. Cellebrite has said the Premium name is going away as its capabilities are folded into Inseyets.Cellebrite
- MSAB XRY ProXRY Pro is the advanced tier of the XRY family, aimed at locked and encrypted devices that standard modules cannot reach. MSAB restricts it to practitioners who hold a current XRY certification.MSAB
- Magnet AxiomAxiom is Magnet Forensics' main examination platform. It takes images and extractions from computers, phones, cloud accounts and vehicles into a single case and presents the artefacts side by side.Magnet Forensics
- Magnet ACQUIREMagnet ACQUIRE was Magnet Forensics' free acquisition tool for Android and iOS devices, later extended to computers. It no longer appears on Magnet's product or free tools pages. Its acquisition engine now lives inside Magnet Axiom.Magnet Forensics
Courses that cover this tool
MobileMobile & IoT ForensicsiOS ForensicsBFU and AFU states, iTunes and Finder backups, the keychain and iLEAPP for iPhone cases
MobileMobile & IoT ForensicsAndroid ForensicsExtract and examine Android phones, from ADB pulls to WhatsApp databases and ALEAPP reports
LegalFoundation & Legal CoursesLegal & Court ProceduresIndian law on electronic evidence: BSA Section 63, BNSS search and seizure and the IT Act.Product names and trademarks belong to their respective owners. DFRTI is an independent educational and research institute. Inclusion in this directory does not imply manufacturer endorsement, partnership or authorisation. Facts are checked against the manufacturer's public documentation on the date shown and may have changed since.
Go deeper with DFRTI
Free pages explain the ground. Structured courses, lab work and a mentor take you from knowing about it to doing it on a case.