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Jailbreak Software Released for iPhone 4

iPhone 4 Jailbreak

One of the joys of owning an iPhone is the satisfaction of liberating it from the clutches of Steve Jobs. Unfortunately, simply purchasing it is not liberating enough. With App restrictions in place, the iPhone may not truly feel like yours until you can totally brick it with unabated fervor.

Sunday, a hacker simply known as “comex“, part of the iPhone Dev Team, released a hack that will allow users to jailbreak the new iPhone 4 smartphone. In the wake of the controversial Applegate scandal, this is welcoming news for weary iPhone lovers.

One important advancement in the technology of iPhone hacking is that this newest hack no longer requires the user to download software, install it on their computer, and then tether the iPhone to the computer. Instead, they need only to connect to the website via their Safari browser, which will then begin jailbreaking their phones. As dangerous as that sounds, many users will love the simplicity.

There are reports that the new jailbreaking also breaks FaceTime and MMS features on the iPhone. The hacker responsible, comex, said that he is aware of the problem and is working on a fix.

This new jailbreaking hack comes only a week after the U.S. Library of Congress (LOC) made it legal for users to unlock, jailbreak, and otherwise circumvent the restrictions on their smartphones, including iPhones. Apple had long contended that it was illegal, based on the 1998 DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act).  The LOC added this clause to clarify the DMCA:

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“Computer programs that enable wireless telephone handsets to execute software applications, where circumvention is accomplished for the sole purpose of enabling interoperability of such applications, when they have been lawfully obtained, with computer programs on the telephone handset.”

Those following the development of U.S. legal restrictions on digital freedoms, however, are concerned that a new treaty, the ACTA (Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement), will undo any liberties the LOC is able to squeeze out of the current legislation.  Regardless, no law has slowed down the efforts to jailbreak smartphones such as the iPhone or Android-based phones.

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I am a librarian with 8 years of experience in information architecture, technology, free and open source software, and electronic publishing. I have written hundreds of articles on topics ranging from information technology to politics. I also write fiction novels, short stories, and fables.

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