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Jailbreaking

Is jailbreaking legal?

What is Jailbreaking?

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Jailbreaking

Is jailbreaking legal?

Congress has concluded that jailbreaking is in fact legal.

What is Jailbreaking?

I'll explain. We’ve all heard the term “Jailbreaking” but not everyone knows what it is. Basically, jailbreaking is a process by which the restrictions that Apple has placed on iOS devices can be bypassed. This act allows us to install apps and tweaks that are not authorized by Apple. It can also provide the means by which certain devices can be unlocked, without the carrier being involved.

The more technical answer is that jailbreaking is the installation of a set of modified kernel patches. The kernel is the boss of the operating system and, by finding its weaknesses, otherwise known as exploits, we can get round it to modify our devices in a number of different ways,

When the jailbreak is installed on your device it installs Cydia. This is basically the jailbreak version of the app store and contains a vast number of apps, built by hackers and developers. Amongst these apps are those that can help you customize your device by changing the way it works. There are simple tweaks to change your wallpapers or make your lock screen more functional. Or you can turn your iOS device into a Wi-Fi hot spot, tether your device to bypass using data, or gain access to system settings. If there is something you want to be able to do with your device, you can be pretty sure there is a tweak for it somewhere in Cydia.

For those that don’t know, many of Apples best ideas started life as jailbreak tweaks. Despite the fact that Apple is dead set against the process, even they cannot deny that there are some pretty good ideas floating around Cydia and, if people are jailbreaking their devices to use them, they must be worth building into the iOS somewhere along the line.

As with most things, there are some risks associated with jailbreaking. There has to be when you consider that you are ripping the system wide open. Because the apps don’t come under Apple guidelines there is always the risk of coming across one that will play havoc with your device. However, many people feel that the benefits of jailbreaking far outweigh the chance of anything and happening.

Contrary to what some people believe, following a ruling in 2010, jailbreaking is a perfectly legal process. Apple continues to fight against this, stating that the process is providing an unsafe environment for their users. As each iOS firmware is released, it contains more security and, whenever a jailbreak tool makes it way to the users, Apple are not far behind with the fix for it. In the meantime, if your device breaks down and it is in a jailbroken state, Apple will not honor the warranty.