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Jailbreaking iPhone Now Legal

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the wait-for-the-appeal dept.

whisper_jeff writes "The US government on Monday announced new rules making it officially legal for iPhone owners to 'jailbreak' their device and run unauthorized third-party applications, as well as the ability to unlock any cell phone for use on multiple carriers." The EFF has further details on this and some of the other legal protections granted in the new rules.

7 of 423 comments (clear)

  1. iPod Touch and Playstation 3 Linux? by Niris · · Score: 3, Interesting

    So do these new exceptions apply to the iPod Touch as well? I would assume so since it's the same app process, but RFA only mentioned phones. Also what about the Playstation 3 and how they don't allow Linux anymore, would this fall under this, too?

  2. Legality vs. Ability by clinko · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I don't think legality was holding people back. It mainly was the technical expertise to do so.

    I think jailbreaking will be still limited to the hobbiest.

    To use a car analogy (Which will be replied to with a better analogy proving me wrong):
    Now everyone can put "illegal" flamethrower pipes on their car and not get arrested, but who's going to do it but hobbiest?

  3. Distribution of jailbreaking tools still illegal by Lyrrad · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Note that the Librarian of Congress Rulemaking provision only exempts the circumvention provisions of the DMCA. The Librarian cannot exempt individuals from the distribution provisions of the DMCA.

    So, while you can now legally jailbreak your phone, it would still be illegal to distribute the software program itself.

  4. Re:hooray by halfEvilTech · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Now make it so that performing this act does not void your warranty as well and I would be a happy camper. Or at least make it so that if the carrier then bricks your device on purpose to get those unlocked devices out of the market be liable to replace it.

  5. Does this mean... by ceraphis · · Score: 4, Interesting

    That Apple isn't allowed to do anything warranty-wise if you jailbreak your iphone in the future? Could they refuse to replace a broken glass screen if they find out your iphone is or was ever jailbroken, JUST BECAUSE it was jailbroken?

    Otherwise I don't see any implications for the end user. It's not like if you went into an Apple store with a jailbroken iphone the authorities were called to arrest you. Also, the people involved in the jailbreak process haven't exactly been trying to hide their work, they even have videos of them in the process.

  6. Re:Warranty? by sgbett · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I agree with both your post and the parent, the question arises when you install software that, say, makes the hardware do things that the original software was designed not to.

    I remember running linux on a laptop that had dodgy power management, the fans wouldn't turn on when the cpu started to heat up. Eventually the hardware cut out would switch the laptop off when the cpu hit 100 Celsius. Eventually the laptop died by way of failed charging connection - I can't say whether or not it was related to the excessive heating and cooling.

    If you install some 3rd party OS on your iPhone that creams the cpu and it, say, discolours the screen, or maybe cracks the case - then surely you can't expect a warranty replacement? I'm not suggesting you would try and pull that one, but I'm sure there are others who may not be so scrupulous.

    --
    Invaders must die
  7. Re:Distribution of jailbreaking tools still illega by CaseM · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Only in the United States.