Chronic

Got a jailbroken Apple TV? You may soon get to enjoy Guardian Firewall’s VPN on it

For a company that appears to tout privacy as much as they do, it’s both astounding and questionable as to why Apple doesn’t permit VPN functionality on its Apple TV platform out of the box. Fascinatingly, VPNs can be installed and used on almost every other Apple device aside from the Apple Watch, including the iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and even the Mac.

There’s no question that this silly limitation has brushed some Apple TV users the wrong way. On the other hand, there may be hope for those holding out. In a teaser Tweet shared this Thursday afternoon, Guardian Firewall founder and CEO Will Strafach said that the first VPN (and firewall) for tvOS is in the works and could be released for jailbroken Apple TVs in the future:

Rogue DMCA takedowns wrongfully targeted the jailbreak community [updated]

It’s never a dull moment for the jailbreak community, and this week, the spotlight isn’t so much on jailbreak tool releases as it is on a series of baseless DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) take-downs that appear to be targeting jailbreak-oriented software and iOS security research.

All the hubbub began with a simple Tweet shared by respected community hacker @siguza, which contained an iPhone encryption key. This key was comprised of a long string of randomized letters and numbers and would have appeared as gibberish to most common folk. Shortly after the Tweet fell victim to one of these requests, threads on the popular /r/jailbreak subreddit regarding checkra1n and unc0ver became victimized by similar activity:

Apple sues mobile device virtualization company Corellium, cites ‘copyright infringement’

Apple’s legal team filed a lawsuit against mobile device virtualization company Corellium LLC this week for purported “copyright infringement,” citing that Corellium’s business model “is based entirely on commercializing the illegal replication of the copyrighted operating system and applications that run on Apple’s iPhone, iPad, and other Apple devices.”

Corellium’s services are a valuable asset to security researchers because they enable deployment of Apple’s mobile operating system in a virtualized environment. With such a tool, hackers can research iOS vulnerabilities, and in the case of unc0ver lead developer Pwn20wnd, it can even help with jailbreak tool development by ensuring stability across all device and firmware combinations.

TaiG organizes jailbreak convention in China, with prominent hackers set to attend

Chinese company/team of hackers TaiG is organizing Mobile Security Summit, a jailbreak convention scheduled for March 27, in Beijing, China, with several prominent figures of the jailbreak community already set to attend the event.

The announcement of this event hasn't been publicized quite yet on this side of the world, but it seems the TaiG team aims at bringing its own version of JailbreakCon to mainland China. The schedule seems quite tight since it's only two weeks away from now, but that hasn't stopped famous hackers such as comex, P0sixninja, Pimskeks, and Chronic from committing to present at the event.

Chronic: Two-minute iPhone crack valid only if passcode is 0000

Remember that two-minute passcode lock exploit we told you about last week? The one by Swedish security firm Micro Systemation behind the XRY app that can get to your data, including contacts, messages and call logs? Well, prominent hacker Chronic has proved them wrong. In an effort to set the record straight, the hacker posted a clarification on his website that pretty much debunks their claim.

Though the XYR tool taps a popular jailbreak exploit, Chronic is adamant the two minutes it takes to crack your passcode is only valid if you set your passcode to '000'. Conspicuously, that's the passcode the firm showed in their demo clip. Interesting enough, the original video of the exploit in action is no longer available on YouTube.

14 Reasons the Editor in Chief of PC Mag Should Never Write About Apple

We told you there is a rumor going around that Apple might start selling factory unlocked iPhones in the US, starting this Wednesday. The rumor was started by @ChronicWire, a "side account" of fame jailbreak developer Chronic.

Today, PC Mag Editor in Chief Lance Ulanoff wrote a piece titled "Unlock iPhones: Why Apple Won't Do It" where he explains his point of view on the rumor. And boy his point of view is screwed. Let's dissect it and analyze...

Unlocked iPhones Headed to U.S. Apple Stores This Week?

Apple could start selling unlocked iPhones in its retail stores, starting this Wednesday. According to famed jailbreak developer, Chronic, Apple retail is gearing up to offer factory unlocked iPhones in U.S. locations. If Chronic's sources are correct, travelers and SIM-swappers should be very happy with this news.

This would be the first time that Apple offered factory unlocked iPhones in the U.S. Customers in countries like Canada and Hong Kong have already been able to purchase carrier-unlocked iPhones.