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Barely a day has passed since Apple updated iOS to 4.3.3, but the iPhone Dev Team has already published its latest jailbreaking software.
It seems the team hasn’t had to work as hard as normal on this one. Apple usually makes a point of closing down the exploit holes with each new version of its software, forcing a new strategy from the hackers. But the hack that worked for 4.3.1 still opens up 4.3.3.
In a blog post entitled Tic tac toe, the team are surprised but happy Apple hasn’t closed the gap. “We’re not exactly sure why Apple hasn’t fixed the hole yet,” they write. Apple was probably too busy digging itself out of the location-tracking PR disaster to be bothered with trivialities like stopping people hacking its software.
It’s also possible Apple doesn’t have so much of a vested interest in keeping its mobile devices so tightly locked down any more. There are very few revenue incentives or exclusive deals with mobile operators.
While there are some inherent risks and performance issues with jailbroken devices, most users likely to hack their mobile phone are tech savvy and already know the potential for problems. Apple still makes money on the sale of hardware and continues to rake in the iTunes cash from everyone else. It’s hardly bad publicity either.
Anyone with a compatible device can download the update. This excludes pre-iPhone 3GS devices that can’t run iOS 4.3 and also the iPad 2, for which a hack is still being developed.
