Apple Ships Out Jailbroken iPhones to Security Researches to Look for Bugs

Apple has been reported to be sending jailbroken iPhones to security researchers and developers to help look for vulnerabilities on the devices.

Security researcher Gergely Kalman posted on X (formerly Twitter) announced to receive a special iPhone 14 from Apple along with specific instructions and promotional stickers.

Speaking to Business Insider, the Spain-based security researcher said the jailbroken device will allow experts "run arbitrary code" to look for vulnerabilities and bugs.

Apple previously set out a $1 million bounty on bugs in 2019, announcing that it will soon send out "special" versions of iPhones to security researchers.

Apple Seeks Out Solution for Long-Time Issue of Vulnerabilities

The recent development in the tech giant's progress on shutting down potential exploit vulnerabilities follows after more and more hackers are abusing

Just last December, Russian cybersecurity firm Kaspersky discovered one of the "most sophisticated" zero-day vulnerability in iPhones operating system.

The detected exploit leverages Apple's iMessage file attachment feature to bypass the iOS's hardware-based memory protections to take full control of the device.

According to the group, users do not need to open the bugged message for hackers to breach and steal sensitive data.

Apple quickly patched the vulnerability soon after but not before the exploit was used to attack over thousands of iPhones in Russia.

Kaspersky has long criticized Apple for relying on a "security through obscurity" approach when it comes to vulnerabilities in its hardware systems.

According to the cybersecurity group, Apple's devices will never truly be secure as long as the same strategy is used amid advancing methods of cyberattacks.

Apple's Official Jailbroken iPhones: What You Need to Know

Apple, so far, has only disclosed a few information about the official jailbroken iPhones, and for good reasons.

The clearest glimpse of its features was from the pictures Kalman posted, stating that the Security Research Device allows developers to investigate the system in "a customer-like state."

According to the instructions, researchers can add developer tools and platform privileges on the devices through its cryptex subsystem.

These special iPhones have not gone through the full production process and are not available for public use.

iPhone jailbreaks are equivalent to rooting in Android devices, allowing the user to modify the operating system of their phones.

It is not recommended for non-developers to root or jailbreak their phones as it can break the device's system and capacity in the process.