'Browser' The Electronics-Sniffing Dog Uncovers Hidden Devices

LAKE COUNTY, IL — One of the few dogs in the country who have been trained to sniff out electronic devices for investigators is working for Lake County. Since joining the cyber division of the Lake County State's Attorney's Office last November, the second certified electronic evidence K9 in the state has taken part in about 10 search warrants.

Browser is a 18-month-old, 75-pound black Lab who specializes in smelling electronics, like cell phones, tablets, flash drives and SD cards. He's available to help out any law enforcement agencies in the county, and he's already been extremely helpful to several investigations into child exploitation, according to the county prosecutor.

"Child predators have grown increasingly sophisticated by hiding evidence onto removable devices and hiding those devices," said State's Attorney Mike Nerheim. "With the aid of Browser, we are able to locate this critical evidence and increase our ability to keep our community safe."

On top of being accessible to any department in the county, Browser also will assist the Illinois Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force to carry out search warrants to uncover hidden devices in child exploitation cases. The state's attorney's office said electronic evidence is becoming important in a growing number of cases.

In one child pornography case, Browser found SD cards hidden in a jewelry box, according to office. In other cases, he found a card stashed in someone's slipper and a phone hidden in a waste basket.

Browser and his handler, Cyber Crimes Analyst Carol Gudbrandsen, have also participated in presentations at schools about internet safety and cyber-bullying. Gudbrandsen told the Daily Herald that Browser can help make it easier to discuss serious topics with students, who are often amazed when she shows off his skills.

Dogs trained to search for electronics are actually sniffing for a compound called triphenylphosphine oxide (TPPO), according to TechRepublic. The substance is used to prevent overheating in circuit boards in every storage device – all the way down to the smallest microSD card.

The Lake County State's Attorney's office purchased Browser for about $10,000 with the support of the Waukegan Police Department, according to the Daily Herald. He was trained by Jordan Detection K-9 Indiana– the same trainer who discovered a vital SD card leading to the child pornography conviction of former Subway spokesman Jared Fogel. Nerheim told the paper that's where he got to the idea.

"I heard about the electronic detection dog in the Fogel case and said we need one."