Jailbreak

Jailbreaking is the process of removing Apple software restrictions for iOS devices. Jailbroken devices authorize root access on devices and it will let you install apps not available on the Apple app store. Jailbreak developers achieved root access through exploitation of vulnerabilities that exist on iOS versions, as well iOS devices.

Reason to jailbreak

The main reason to jailbreak is Apple features are limited. We can not install third party apps and it's only allowed to install app store apps approved by Apple. Apple always checked the apps with the iOS developer program license agreement before distributing through the App Store. Also, banned apps which violated the agreement based on safety and security reasons.

However, Jailbreaking grants you to download apps not approved by Apple to get unlimited features with customization options. A lot of people are motivated to  install Jailbreak tweaks to personalize and customize their iOS device. There are plenty of Jailbreak tweaks developed by developers which are easier to use than Apple's. Also, some jailbreak features are adopted by Apple in many iOS versions.

Package managers

Package manager is a collection of software for jailbroken devices. It's capable of running processes of installing, upgrading, configuring, and removing applications automatically.

Cydia is the most popular package manager for Jailbroken devices. Jay Freeman, also known as saurik, developed Cydia to manage jailbroken devices.

Also, there are a few other package managers such as Sileo, Zebra and Installer 5. These package managers allow users to install packages from any source on the internet. Also, every jailbreak and package manager comes with a set of default repositories.

Unlocking

Unlocking and jailbreaking are entirely different things. Even the software Jailbreak goes with iOS versions, Unlock is valid for the device. Unlocking is removing carrier-lock to enable use with other carriers.

You cannot unlock the latest iOS versions using jailbreak, but users can unlock their devices using Jailbreak. UltraSn0w is the most popular unlocking source for jailbroken devices. Developers (iPhone Dev-Team)  updated Ultrasn0w to iOS 6.1 and gave up the Ultrasn0w project. But, there is no available jailbroken unlocking method now.

Legal Status of Jailbreaking

The legal side of Jailbreaking was first discussed in 2007 mentioning an exception for unlocking carriers  from the Library of Congress. After that, the US Copyright Office directly recognized an exemption to the DMCA to permit jailbreaking which allows iPhone owners to use their phones with applications that are not available from Apple's store & unlock their iPhones for use with unapproved carriers  in 2010. Previously Apple complained against this exemption saying that jailbreaking to be a violation of copyright law. Thenconsiders DMCA exemptions must be reviewed and renewed every three years or else they expire.

In  2012, the US Copyright Office released a new exemption to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) that jailbreaking of smartphones continued to be legal & refused to extend this exemption to tablets, such as iPads. However In 2015, these exemptions were extended to include other devices, including tablets.

Accordingly, software Jailbreak is legal according to the US government. However, Apple may deny service for an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch that has installed any unauthorized software.

Types of Jailbreaking

Different types of jailbreaking available.  Any jailbreak tool belongs to one of these types.

Untethered Jailbreak – Untethered jailbreak is defined as a permanent and real solution. You can reboot your iPhone or iPod touch as much as you want without losing jailbreak. Ex: Old Pangu Jailbreak.

Tethered Jailbreak – Tethered jailbreak is defined as a temporary. It means you will lose the jailbreak every time after reboot. The Tethered method does not allow you to restart your device. Ex : Old Redsn0w Jailbreak.

Semi-tethered Jailbreak – Semi-tethered Jailbreak is the combination of the above methods. This method allows you to restart your device with limited use and you need to run the jailbreak tool to get full functional cydia. According to the Semi-tethered jailbreak, it needs to get PC support to run the jailbreak tool repeatedly, when Cydia is lost. Ex- Newly released Checkra1n Jailbreak.

Semi-untethered Jailbreak – Semi-untethered jailbreak is very similar to Semi-tethered Jailbreak. One and only difference is the Semi-untethered Jailbreak method never asks PC support to resolve Cydia when it is lost in every reboot. Ex: Unc0ver Jailbreak, Taurine jailbreak.

Semi Jailbreak – Semi Jailbreak is another jailbreak method. It allows you to install themes, tweaks, iOS customization apps and some popular Jailbreak functions with the system root  access of your iPhone or iPad. However, it does not install Cydia on your device. Houdini semi jailbreak & Rootless JB are the most popular semi jailbreak methods.

Online Jailbreak (No PC) – Most jailbreak tools ask PC or Mac support to complete the jailbreak process. But with Online jailbreak you don't need to use Computer support. JailbreakMe is the only tool which is possible to complete the jailbreak process without using a computer.

However, most jailbreak repo extractors, third party app stores provide online Jailbreak IPA files for all full functional Jailbreak methods such as Unc0ver, Taurine, Chimera, etc. Read more about Online jailbreak IPA methods from Jailbreak without PC  Page.

Lightning cable Jailbreak – Lightning cable Jailbreak is another hardware related concept. Hackers turn Apple's Lightning connector to debug kernel bugs. Because of this method, it can use Lightning cable for future jailbreak. Yuxigon is the lightning connector jailbreak ever.

Jailbreakable Apple devices

iPhone has default limitations to device customizations / system file access. So iPhone jailbreak is the only solution to get all the missing features to your iPhone device. Also, some features are only available in the latest iPhone models given below.

iPhone 13, 13 Pro, 13 Pro Max, 13 mini – This is the latest series Apple released with the iOS 15. It comes with Apple A15 Bionic. Find more details with the iPhone 13 jailbreak page.

iPhone 12, 12 Pro, 12 Pro Max, 12 mini – Apple released the iPhone 12 series with three new models. iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max were launched at the Apple event with iOS 14.1. Go to the iPhone 12 jailbreak page for more details.

iPhone 11, 11 Pro, 11 Pro Max – Apple released the new 03 models as iPhone 11, 11 Pro, 11 Pro Max with iOS 13 at the 2019 Apple event. Go to iPhone 11 Jailbreak page for more jailbreak details.

iPhone X, XS, XS Max and XR – Apple released iPhone XS, XS Max and XR at the iOS 12 launch event with the most powerful A12 bionic chip. Also, Apple released the iPhone X to celebrate their 10th Anniversary with the A11 Processor. Click iPhone X, XS Jailbreak to get more details.

iPad – The iPad has less expandability / limited customization/cannot run third party software. Apple included multitasking features in the latest iPad OS releases. However, some older iPad cannot get these features without jailbreaking. So iPad jailbreak is the only solution to bypass all these restrictions.

iPod Touch – Apple refers to iPod Touch as "iPhone without the phone." Normally, iPod Touch design is mainly for playing music and video / digital camera /game devices. iPod Touch users cannot get phone calls / cellular network data /voice recording capability/Can not play other media formats. iPod Touch jailbreak allows you to get some awesome features.

Apple TV – Apple TV jailbreak is available to get jailbreak features such as weather slideshows on your TV menu and screen saver settings adjustment. Jailbroken devices will offer Hulu, ESPN, Amazon, Last.fm, Pandora, PBS, A&E, ABC, CBS, NBA, MTV media services.

Apple Watch – Most valuable functions are not available in Apple Watch yet. Web browser support /advance clock types /custom watch faces are the top missing features. Even though Jailbreak is the way to get it, there is no iWatch jailbreak solution for Apple Watches yet.

Jailbreaking tools

Jailbreak tools and processes may vary depending on your device model and iOS versions.

Use the most compatible Jailbreak tool according to your device model / iOS version and computer operating system.

You must know your iOS version before downloading the jailbreak tool.

Go to "Settings" > "General"> "About"  to figure out your iOS version.

Here is the all available Jailbreak tools list from the beginning.

Tool Name Compatible iOS versions Developed by Support operating system
Checkra1n iOS 14 – iOS 14.8.1
iOS iOS 13 – iOS 13.7
iOS 12 – iOS 12.5.5		 Checkra1n team Mac and Linux
Taurine iOS 14 – iOS 14.3 CoolStar Mac and Linux
Unc0ver iOS 14 – iOS 14.3
iOS 14.4 – iOS 14.5.1 (A12-A14)
iOS 13 – iOS 13.7
iOS 12 – iOS 12.5.4
iOS 11 – iOS 11.4.1		 Pwn20wnd Windows and Mac
Odyssey iOS 13 – iOS 13.7 CoolStar Windows and Mac
RootlessJB iOS 12 – iOS 12.4.8
iOS 11- iOS 11.4 1		 Brandon Plank
JakeJames		 Windows and Mac
Chimera iOS 12 – iOS 12.5.5 CoolStar Windows and Mac
Electra Jailbreak iOS 11- iOS 11.4 1 Cool Star Windows and Mac
LiberiOS iOS 10 – iOS 10.3.2
iOS 11- iOS 11.3.1		 Jonathan Levin Windows and Mac
To.panga iOS 12 – iOS 12.1.2 Abraham Masri Windows and Mac
Houdini semi Jailbreak iOS 11 – iOS 11.1.2 Abraham Masri Windows and Mac
C0F3 iOS 10 – iOS 10.3.3 Joseph Shenton/C0F3 Team Windows and Mac
DoubleH3lix iOS 10 – iOS 10.3.3 Tihmstar Windows and Mac
G0blin iOS 10.3 – iOS 10.3.3 Sticktron Windows and Mac
H3lix iOS 10 – iOS 10.3.3 Tihmstar Windows and Mac
Meridian iOS 10 – iOS 10.3.3 Sparkey/Ben Sparkes Windows and Mac
Saigon Jailbeak iOS 10.2.1 Abraham Masri Windows and Mac
Yalu102 iOS  10.2 Luca Todesco Windows and Mac
Yalu mach-portal iOS 10 & iOS 10.1.1 Luca Todesco Windows and Mac
Yalu extra_recipe+yaluX iOS 10.1.1(iPhone7/7+) Luca Todesco Windows and Mac
Phoenix Jailbreak iOS 9.3.5 & iOS 9.3.6 Siguza and tihmstar Windows and Mac
JailbreakMe 4.0 iOS 9.1 – iOS 9.3.4 Tihmstar Online
BetterHomeDepot iOS 9.1 – iOS 9.3.4 jk9357 team Windows and Mac
Pangu jailbreak iOS 9.2 – iOS 9.3.3
iOS 9.0 – iOS 9.1		 Pangu team Windows and Mac
PP jailbreak iOS 9.2 -iOS 9.3.3
iOS 8 – iOS 8.4		 25PP Windows and Mac
EtasonJB Jailbreak iOS 8.4.1 tihmstar Windows and Mac
TaiG jailbreak iOS 8.0 – iOS 8.4 TaiG Team Windows and Mac
Evasi0n7 jailbreak / evasi0n jailbreak iOS 7 – iOS 7.0.6
iOS 6.0 – iOS 6.1.2		 Evad3rs Evasi0n7 – Windows Mac
evasi0n – Windows Mac Linux
P0sixspwn iOS 6.1.3 – iOS 6.1.6 Winocm, iH8sn0w, and SquiffyPwn Windows and Mac
Redsn0w Untethered iOS 4.1 – iOS 5.1.1
Tethered jailbreak – iOS 4.2.10 to iOS 6.0.1		 iPhone Dev-Team Windows and Mac
Absinthe iOS 5.1.1 Dream Team Windows and Mac
Pwnage iOS 5.1.1 – iOS 5.0.1
iOS 4.0 – iOS 4.3.3		 iPhone Dev-Team Mac
Sn0wBreeze iOS 3.1.3 – iOS 6.1.3 iH8sn0w Windows
JailbreakMe Saffron iOS 4.2.6 – iOS 4.3.3
Star iOS 3.1.2 – iOS 4.0.1		 Comex Web
GreenPois0n iOS 4.1 – iOS 4.2.1 Chronic-Dev Team Windows and Mac
LimeRa1n iOS 4.1 – iOS 3.2.2 GeoHot Windows and Mac
Sprit iOS 3.1.2 – iOS 3.2 Comex Windows and Mac
Blackra1n iOS 3.1.2 iPhone Dev-Team Windows and Mac
QuickPWN iOS 2.2.1 iPhone Dev-Team Windows and Mac

Also, you can download the latest Jailbreak tools / alternatives from the following pages.

iOS 15.2 Jailbreak (Beta)

iOS 15.1 / iOS 15.1.1 Jailbreak

iOS 15 – iOS 15.0.2 Jailbreak

iOS 14.8 / iOS 14.8.1Jailbreak

iOS 14.7 / iOS 14.7.1 Jailbreak

iOS 14.6 jailbreak

iOS 14.5 / iOS 14.5.1 jailbreak

iOS 14.3 – iOS 14.4.2 Jailbreak

iOS 14.2.1 / iOS 14.2 Jailbreak

iOS 14 – iOS 14.1 Jailbreak

Jailbreak Alternatives

Jailbreak Alternatives allow you to download jailbreak apps /third party apps  on your device.

The reason to use these, as soon as the new iOS version is released you can't jailbreak it. Because it needs some time to find bugs / create exploits for the new iOS version. Also, some iOS versions, some device models can not jailbreak. So you need to use Jailbreak Alternatives / Jailbreak App installers until jailbreak is released.

Here are the most popular alternative jailbreak solutions.

Zeon – Zeon is the jailbreak repo extractor. It was specially designed as a jailbreak app download for iOS 14. Now it has upgraded adding jailbreak support for iOS 14 – iOS 14.8.1. Also compatible with iOS 15 – iOS 15.2. It has available massive jailbreak repos under the Zeon for app download. You can install most popular app stores, theme apps, game apps, ++ apps, jailbreak alternatives and many more with Zeon.

Hexxa Plus / Hexxa – Hexxa Plus is a jailbreak Repo extractor especially designed for iOS 13. Jailbreak app download is possible with Hexxa Plus by extracting repos for the iOS 13+, iOS 14+ as well as iOS 15+. You can install popular app stores, Themes, web Oses with Hexxa Plus. Hexxa Plus is an upgraded version of Hexxa. Hexxa repo extractor was initially released for iOS 12.2 and Now it is compatible with all iOS 12 & higher versions upto iOS 12.5.5. Both Hexxa Plus and Hexxa have very impressive features.

zJailbreak – zJailbreak is a most popular third party app installation manager. It is an alternative to Cydia as well as the Apple app store. It has many customization apps & tweaks. Also it has an easy online process to install on your iPhone or iPad. zJailbreak provides Online IPA' for all jailbreak tools too. It is compatible with all latest iOS versions.

Bregxi – Bregxi is released for iOS 12.3 for the very first time. Now it is compatible with iOS 12.3 & higher versions. Bregxi uses a repo extracting method for jailbreak app download to your iPhones and iPads. Most popular repositories exclusively available with Bregxi.

Ziyu – Ziyu is one of the best methods to download jailbreak apps on iOS 12 & higher versions. Actually, it is a Jailbreak repo extractor. It will download Jailbreak apps including Cydia by extracting repo.

Anzhuang – Anzhuang is the best online jailbreak app installer up to iOS 12.1.4. It is available with zJailbreak, Xabsi or iExtras app stores and installs jailbreak apps using Dev code extraction method.

Velonzy – Velonzy is another jailbreak app installer for iOS iOS 10.3.3 to iOS 11.4.1 versions. It installs jailbreak apps via UDID registration method. It has both NO PC and PC required installation method. Now it has been discontinued by the developer.

Apricot iOS  – Apricot iOS is a virtual jailbreak for latest iOS versions including beta. It runs synchronously on supported devices as an app. Apricot iOS installs Cydia on your device virtually.

Many jailbreak apps / jailbreak app stores named above have become partner websites with iBundles. When you get the membership of iBundles, you can download all the partner websites just for free. There are 18 partner websites under iBundles.

Jailbreaking vs Android rooting

Jailbreaking of iOS devices is similar to rooting of Android devices because both are used to grant the system-level privileges, which may be transferred to one or more apps.

But, Android devices already allow the user to sideload 3rd-party apps installed from other sources. Also allow users to modify or replace the full operating system after unlocking the bootloader.

However, Apple has security features that bootloaders can not be unlocked by the owner to modify the operating system. Also, it is prohibited to install private applications onto corporate phones, sideloading 3rd-party apps onto iOS devices from sources other than the Apple Store. iOS Jailbreaking removes these restrictions and offers modified or pirated releases of popular apps through Cydia which is similar to Android.

How to install apk files

apk files are created for Android devices. It runs only on Google's mobile operating system. Normally, apk apps cannot install on iDevices running iOS operating systems. However, after the jailbreak process it can install apk apps / files as third party apps on jailbroken iPhones and iPads. But, it cannot work with apk apps properly on iOS devices. Because it uses a different coding system to write apk files. So, it is no use installing apk files on jailbroken iPhones or iPads.

Jailbreak features adopted by Apple

Here is the list of Jailbreak features adopted by Apple according to iOS versions.

iOS 5

Emoji support – Vmoji tweak for iOS 4 by Vintendo/ManChild Technologies

Keyboard shortcuts – Xpandr for iOS 4 tweak by Nicholas Haunold

Delete individual calls – Call Delete tweak for iOS 4 by IArrays

iOS 7

Control Center – SBSettings for iOS 2 by BigBoss

Translucent Notification Center – BlurredNCBackground for iOS 5 by Phillippe

iOS 8

Interactive Notifications – LockInfo for iOS 4 by David Ashman & biteSMS for iOS 5 by biteSMS Team

Third-Party Keyboards – Fleksy Enabler for iOS 6 by Sea Comet

Predictive Text – PredictiveKeyboard for iOS 7 by Matthias Sauppe

iOS 9

Cursor Control – SwipeSelection for iOS 4 by Kyle Howells

Lowercase Keys in Keyboard – ShowCase for iOS 4 by Lance Fetters

iOS 10

Separate Control Center Pages – Auxo for iOS 9 by A3Tweaks

Floating Notification Center – Floater for iOS 8 by Skylerk99

Bubble Notifications – WatchNotifications for iOS 8 by Thomas Finch

Clear All Notifications – 3D Touch to Clear Notifications for iOS 8 by MohammadAG & OneTapClear for iOS 8 by Rave.

Drawing on Messages – Graffiti for iOS 5 by IanP

Stickers in Messages – StickerMe for iOS 8 by Alexander Laurus

iOS 11

Customizable Control Center – CChide/CCSettings for iOS 8 by plipala & Onizuka for iOS 8 by Maximehip

Cellular Data Control – SBSettings for iOS 2 by BigBoss & CCSettings for iOS 8 by plipala

Low Power Mode in Control Center – CCLowPower for iOS 10 by Cole Cabral

Colored Controls – Cream for iOS 8 by CP Digital Darkroom

One-Handed Keyboard (iPhone) – OneHandWizard for iOS 8 by TheAfricanNerd, sharedRoutine

Notification design tweaks – CleanNotification10 for iOS 10 by Ayden Panhuyzen

iOS 13

Dark Mode – Eclipse for iOS 7 by Guillermo Morán & Noctis for iOS 7 by LaughingQuoll

Wi-Fi/Bluetooth settings in Control Center – WeatherVane for iOS 11 by ATWiiks

Unlimited app download limit on Mobile Data – Appstore Unrestrict for iOS 11 by iJulioverne

Download manager in Safari – Safari Plus for iOS 8 by BigBoss

Third-party Controller Support – nControl for iOS 12 by Kevin Bradley

Redesigned volume HUD – Melior for iOS 7 by SparkDev & Ultrasound for iOS 11 by Ayden Panhuyzen

iOS 14

App Library – Vesta for iOS 13 by SparkDev

Changing CarPlay background – Canvas for iOS 13 Leftyfl1p

Picture in Picture on iPhone – Titan for iOS 13 by TheSaltaCracka

Home Screen Widgets – HSWidgets for iOS 13 by dgh0st

Hide apps from Home screen – Poof for iOS 6 by BigBoss

Smaller Siri – SmallSiri for iOS 13 by Muirey03

Compact Call Interface – CallBar for iOS 7 by Elias Limneos & Scorpion for iOS 13 by Esquilli

Risks

While jailbreaking gives you more valuable features there are also risks.

Installation of malware – Computer criminals are more likely to crash an iPhone to install malware, or to target an iPhone that could easily install malware. So, once you jailbreak your device it will access the file system. So it lets you install malware easily with hacking softwares. Jailbreaking allows you to install pirated applications as well. These apps are not monitored through Apple developers programme. So, Piracy apps could take advantage of installing malware.

It has reported many Security, privacy and stability issues with jailbroken devices for a long time. Here are some of them.

iPhone worm, iKee (2009) – The first iPhone worm created to raise awareness of security issues that jailbreaking can leave your device in an insecure state.

F-Secure (2009) – A malicious worm compromising bank transactions from jailbroken phones in the Netherlands.

John Gruber (2010) – He reported remote code exploits now in the wild and the exploit allowed the creator of a malicious website to take control of iPhones accessing it.

Forbes (2012) – It has analyzed 1,407 free programs available from Apple and a third-party source.  From this 825 were downloaded from Apple's App Store using the website App Tracker, and 526 from BigBoss Cydia's default repository. Cydia leaked the device ID and location, photos and browsing history, while the App Store leaked none.

KeyRaider (2015) – This malware led to stealing users' login and password information from more than 225,000 people.

Hardware Jailbreak

Hardware Jailbreak is somewhat different from Software Jailbreak. Some hackers could add extra features to modifying the hardware of iPhones.

Currently, Hardware Jailbreak is only available for iPhones up to iPhone X.

Still, Hardware Jailbreak is not available for iPhone XS, XS Max, and XR.

Popular Hardware Jailbreaking

* Blinking light effect to Apple Logo

*  Speaker lights for Speakers

Unfortunately, Hardware Jailbreak is not as easy as the Software Jailbreak. You must have excellent ability to set extra hardware removing iPhone cases.