Update: iPhone OS 4.1 adds “jailbreak watermark”?

Posted at 8:18 pm July 14, 2010 by

As many of you know, the new iPhone OS 4.1 update hit today. Besides a reworked signal meter, tweaked game center, and various bug fixes, it looks like Apple went ahead and added one nasty little surprise — a jailbreak watermark. Basically it just checks the phone to see if it is jailbroken. If it is, it leaves a digital watermark that is retained even after a complete “wipe” and re-install of the firmware. Further disturbing is that the watermark is easily discoverable by Apple service reps when performing iPhone repair work. If a watermark is present, there goes any hopes of help from Apple — even for a charge.

The new watermark, highlighted by Razorianfly, uses some basic encryption technology which hopefully isn’t hard to spoof or get around. Looks like Apple just lobbed the ball back into the jailbreaker’s court. Dev-Team: save us! Anyone have anything to share?

Update

Looks like it isn’t going to be as bad as we thought. iOS 4 watermark isn’t the end of the world…

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  • http://www.nichewp.com Rajesh Patel

    You can learn how to update iPhone 4 firmware @ http://iphone5jailbreaktips.com/how-to-update-iphone-4-firmware.html

  • TreZn

    Watermark is fake it was sent out to freak out the weary jailbreaker’s out there. No one has get to find the watermark code or any new
    Encryption of any kind thus watermark = myth

  • Pathfyndr

    Theres gotta be away to emulate a non-jb ios for 4.1 to be tricked, what is jb watermark looking at? lets spoof and emulate something to trick it.

  • wannamobiles

    If I reset & erase all setting to remove the jail break. Will the watermark go away?

  • Graftec

    It would seem to me that after the supreme court ruled that jailbreaking is not illegal that itself would make the action of watermarking by Apple illegal.

    Has anyone thought about this.

    • ANthony

      EXCELLENT observation Graftec! I believe you are correct but this watermark might be a rumor, update isn’t available yet in Canada but should be later today.

    • Tbag

      First off, from everything I’ve read from Jailbreaks like the DevTeam and the guy behind Jailbreak Me, the watermark is a hoax, something that has been rumored every release since the discovery of the ‘killswitch’, and While I agree with Graftec that it once the Almighty government deemed that Jailbreaking is legal Apple should have given up their fight and let people do what they want with the phone they bought with their own hard earned $300. But I don’t think that’s the case…Because while it’s not illegal Apple can still void your warranty for installing third party applications just as a manufacturer can void your warranty for opening a product. So if this watermark did exist it would just be there to show App store workers that your device is no longer under warranty

  • http://twitter.com/verbal_barbar/status/20242692176 Kjell KrimiNELL

    <span class="topsy_trackback_comment"><span class="topsy_twitter_username"><span class="topsy_trackback_content"&gt ;http://bit.ly/cnVO3j om vattenstämpel på jailbreak.</span></span>

  • http://twitter.com/trishaveloso/status/20196090710 Trisha V.

    <span class="topsy_trackback_comment"><span class="topsy_twitter_username"><span class="topsy_trackback_content">@nick_jav http://gadgetsteria.com/2010/07/14/iphone-os-4-1-…

  • http://twitter.com/jesse/status/20111460485 Jesse Stay

    <span class="topsy_trackback_comment"><span class="topsy_twitter_username"><span class="topsy_trackback_content">So has anyone said if the new jailbreakme.com gets around the 4.1 watermarking?: http://bit.ly/cnVO3j /cc @ryan</span></span>

  • http://twitter.com/simplyclaudiaa/status/19391829299 c?audia
  • http://twitter.com/corvedalepony/status/19099700838 Jula Royal Music
  • http://twitter.com/rizofthedead/status/18955619313 Corey Rust

    RT @baristabro: Don't jailbreak if you get new IOS 4.1 http://gadgetsteria.com/2010/07/14/iphone-os-4-1-adds-jailbreak-watermark/

  • http://twitter.com/baristabro/status/18955505978 Thomas Black
  • http://twitter.com/darshandodia/status/18657268117 Darshan Dodia

    iPhone OS 4.1 adds “jailbreak watermark” http://bit.ly/9ere3V Pls RT

  • http://twitter.com/darshandodia/status/18657254139 Darshan Dodia

    iPhone OS 4.1 adds “jailbreak watermark” http://bit.ly/9ere3V

  • http://twitter.com/andrewmiln/status/18630145271 Andrew Milner

    make sure you read this if you have a jailbroken iPhone and are upgrading to iOS 4.1: http://bit.ly/cJdtgT

  • http://twitter.com/j2sw/status/18627854001 Justin Wilson

    Update: iPhone OS 4.1 adds “jailbreak watermark”? ( http://bit.ly/bKislU )

  • http://twitter.com/vilberto/status/18593738393 Vilberto Noerjanto

    NOOOOOOO Apple added a new but very disappointing feature to iPhone OS 4.1 : JAILBREAK WATERMARK. :( T__T http://bit.ly/9ere3V

  • http://twitter.com/weloveiphone4/status/18584775650 WeLoveIphone4

    iPhone OS 4.1 adds “jailbreak watermark”?: by Mike As many of you know, the new iPhone OS 4.1 update hit today. Be… http://bit.ly/bKOj7V

  • http://twitter.com/haashimm/status/18564357256 Haashimm

    @MuscleNerd http://j.mp/cJdtgT is there any truth to this?

  • http://twitter.com/the_gadgeteur/status/18560079632 Mike

    iPhone OS 4.1 adds "jailbreak watermark"? –> Gadgetsteria: http://bit.ly/9a2AjS (via @Gadgetsteria)

  • derp

    “lobbied the ball” lol

    • Mike

      hey…it’s late.