iPhone and iPod touch v1.1.1 full jailbreak tested, confirmed!
We were invited by iPhone / iPod touch file system hacker Niacin (who you might also know for his PSP and MSN TV Linux cluster hacks, etc.) and Dre to test out their new v1.1.1 file system hack.
Context & Ripple Effects
The v1.1.1 jailbreak has moved fast through its arc: the hacking effort was liveblogged in progress on October 5, a preliminary jailbreak was announced October 8, and by October 9 third-party apps were already ported and running on the updated firmware. What today's report adds is independent verification — Engadget was invited in to test Niacin and Dre's file system hack firsthand and confirmed it works.
That matters because Apple shipped v1.1.1 specifically to close the previous jailbreak methods, so a confirmed workaround means the company's lock-down of the device has failed at least once more. Niacin brings credibility from prior hacks on Sony's PSP and an MSN TV Linux cluster, signaling that experienced console-and-embedded hackers are now treating the iPhone as a target.
First-order effects
- iPhone and iPod touch owners on firmware v1.1.1 regain access to third-party applications through an unofficial channel, undoing what the update was designed to prevent.
Second-order effects
- Apple faces continued pressure to respond with another firmware revision, extending the update-and-patch cycle it started with v1.1.1, while the hacker community treats each release as a new challenge.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern holds, every Apple firmware drop becomes a recurring contest between the company's platform controls and an organized hacking scene — structural pressure on Apple to eventually offer a sanctioned way to run third-party software rather than fight each workaround.
The trend: The iPhone is becoming the center of an escalating firmware-level cat-and-mouse between Apple's locked platform and a hacker community that re-breaks each update within days.