A7

S0rryMyBad shares PoC of the bug he used to jailbreak iOS 12 on pre-A12 devices

Just over two weeks ago, security researcher @S0rryMyBad announced the discovery of an exploit for iOS 12.1.2 and below for pre-A12 devices, adding that he would release information about it after Apple patched it in a software update. Fortunately, that time has finally come.

Several hours after Apple released iOS 12.1.3 to the public on Tuesday, @S0rryMyBad made good on his promise by Tweeting a proof of concept screenshot of the bug that he had teased earlier in the month:

Tihmstar opts not to release standalone exploit, instead says “something cool coming”

Matrix code hacked iPhone.

There was no shortage of exciting jailbreak-centric news this past week, but perhaps the most captivating tidbit of all was the announcement that tihmstar was tinkering with an exploit that could hack a subset of devices running iOS 11.2.6-11.4.1 – specifically those with headphone jacks.

It didn’t take long after the initial announcement for tihmstar to share that he had achieved tpf0, which permits arbitrary reads and writes to a device’s kernel memory. On the other hand, a pair of Tweets shared just weekend shed new light on the hacker’s intentions involving said exploit:

Tihmstar achieves tfp0 exploit on iOS 11.4-11.4.1, jailbreaks could soon adopt support

Just yesterday, we reported that hacking guru tihmstar was tinkering with an exploit targeting a subset of iOS 11.4 and 11.4.1 devices that sported headphone jacks. At the time, tihmstar only had kernel read access but was still working on kernel offsets and write access.

But those tides have changed as of Friday. tihmstar has taken to Twitter to announce that he achieved tfp0:

Tihmstar is tinkering with an exploit for iOS 11.4-11.4.1 devices, but there are caveats

If you’ve been waiting patiently on iOS 11.4-11.4.1 for a jailbreak to surface, then you might be in for a treat. Hacking guru tihmstar appears to be tinkering with an exploit that supports these firmware versions, at least on specific devices.

A Tweet shared by tihmstar Tuesday evening denotes how the exploit in question supports iOS versions up to 11.4.1; on the other hand, it also relies on the headphone jack. This caveat means that some devices, like those powered by Apple’s A10 and A11 chips, aren’t supported:

iPhone chips infringe University of Wisconsin’s tech, Apple faces $862M in damages

The Apple-designed, TSMC/Samsung-manufactured A7, A8 and A8X mobile chips that power the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad devices released since 2013 have been found to infringe technology patents owned by the University of Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF).

As a result, Apple is now facing a damages payout of $862.4 million, Reuters reported yesterday. The aforesaid chips power the iPhone 5s, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPad Air, iPad Air 2, iPad mini with Retina display, iPad mini 3 and iPad mini 4.

Apple to start requiring apps to use iOS 8 SDK, offer 64-bit support in February

Apple sent out a notification to developers today, giving them a heads up on a few upcoming changes to its App Store submission policy. Posted in its developer portal, the bulletin says that beginning in February of next year, iOS applications must meet two new requirements.

Starting February 1, 2015, new apps and updates must be built using the iOS 8 SDK (software development kit), and they must include 64-bit support, otherwise they will be rejected. Apple made a similar announcement around this time last year for iOS 7 app optimization.

Scratch that: iPhone 6 ‘Phosphorus’ component likely barometric pressure sensor

An eagle-eyed member of the MacRumors forum says the "Phosporus"component destined for the iPhone 6, leaked on Monday, isn't a next-generation version of Apple's M7 co-processor, but instead a barometric pressure sensor. It makes sense given the several rumors that have cropped up in recent months with word Apple plans a barometer used to measure atmospheric pressure in the iPhone 6.

Rumor: low-powered M7 successor code-named ‘Phosphorous’ to collect health and fitness data (Updated)

An Apple chip internally code-named 'Phosphorous' has been identified on leaked schematics and thought to replace the M7, a motion coprocessor which debuted inside the iPhone 5s last Fall. (Update: It's looking like a barometer pressure sensor instead.)

It's said to include the M7's motion tracking functions and thought to be able to collect a number of health and fitness data from various health and fitness accessories and specialized medical devices.

This apparently includes heart rates, calories burned, cholesterol levels, blood sugar and more. It's believed the chip works in tandem with iOS 8 and the new Health app, which allows users to enter a number of health and fitness-related data manually, or automatically collect these from various HealthKit-friendly accessories and wearables.

TSMC exec says Apple leading move to 64-bit smartphone chips, hints A8 chip production

Apple is responsible for the mobile industry's move to 64-bit processors within smartphones after it announced the iPhone 5s in September, according to Mark Liu, co-CEO of major chip company TSMC.

This is something many industry pundits have been whispering for sometime, so it's interesting to hear from such a higher-up in the chip business. Liu, speaking at a TSMC quarterly results meeting, said it pretty bluntly...