Apple To Crack Down On IPhone Unlocking
Expect your iPhone unlocking software to stop working soon. And then expect it to work again, and then stop again. Speaking at the launch of the U.K. iPhone, Apple CEO Steve Jobs said the company would actively work to suppress iPhone unlocking hacks.
“It’s a cat-and-mouse game,” said Jobs. “We try to stay ahead. People will try to break in, and it’s our job to stop them breaking in.”
This is the first time Apple has officially said it would try to stop attempts to use the iPhone on other networks.
Of course like most games of cat and mouse, there is no clear cat and no clear mouse, so you can expect an endless back and forth game — unlocks found, iPhone firmware updates released and so on, ad nauseam.
It’s an interesting move for Apple, which has historically ignored, if not openly endorsed, attempts to hack its devices. Although updates frequently break hacks of all manner, Apple rarely comes out and says that it is actively working to defeat them.
In all likelihood, Apple’s stance on the iPhone is related to the exclusive deals with mobile carriers, companies far less ambivalent about hacks than Apple. But playing cat-and-mouse with a dedicated group of people like the iPhone hackers could end up being a losing game for Apple.
On the brighter side, Apple hasn’t said anything about actively going after the hacks that enable third party applications.
[via PC World]
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