iOS 8 To Put An End To Casual Jailbreaking?

Updated on

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) unveiled the iOS 8 at its WWDC event earlier this month. As expected, the new operating system has several features that previously made their way to iPhones through jailbreak tweaks. The tech giant fights tooth-and-nail to prevent jailbreaking. According to Business Insider, jailbreaker Stefan Esser is working on a jailbreak to the first version of iOS 8 beta. However, the iPhone maker has changed the root filesystem protections, making it hard for jailbreakers to sidestep its defenses.

iOS 8 extensions allow users to customize things without jailbreaking

So far, jailbreak tweaks have allowed the iPhone users to add features that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) didn’t provide. It helped users customize their devices. Though jailbreaking violates Apple’s end-user software licensing agreement, users try to bypass the company’s built-in defenses to customize their iOS experience. Jailbreaking iDevices has become a booming business. But the iOS 8 has gone a step further to prevent jailbreaking.

The next iPhone and iPad operating system brought a host of customization features for developers as well as users. The iOS 8 has over 4,000 new APIs for home electronics, TouchID fingerprint sensor, iCloud, games, cameras, etc. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) also introduced iOS 8 ‘extensibility’ which will let apps talk to each other. It also allows third-party apps to dictate how they want their content to be shared or viewed in other applications.

The iOS 8 extensions will let users customize several things for which they previously had to depend on jailbreaks. That includes importing things like photo filters, customizing the Notification Center widgets, and system-wide third-party keyboards. Besides, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has eliminated the need of many jailbreak features by introducing similar features with the iOS 8.

iOS 8 signals the end of casual jailbreaking

However, it doesn’t mean jailbreaking will disappear. It’s still possible for hackers to jailbreak the iOS 8. Jailbreaking isn’t going to stop entirely because there are many features Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) won’t be able to touch. For example, game emulators are never going to make it to the App Store due to copyright issues. These programs mimic classic video games.

Anyway, the iOS 8 has signaled that “casual jailbreaking” is going to end as most users will find that it’s no longer necessary to jailbreak their devices. Most of the jailbreak tweaks would soon become full-fledged features. However, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) would want jailbreaks to continue because many of the popular iOS feature ideas have come from jailbreak tweaks.

Leave a Comment