Here’s Why You Should Never Jailbreak Your iPhone Or iPad

Jailbreaking may have its advantages, but the cons far outweight the pros. Here’s why you should stay wary of jailbreaking your iPhone








Unlike the competition, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has taken a more “walled-garden” approach toward iOS. While Android allows an array of customization options and a good level of control over the internal system properties, iOS lacks both. To change this, users are forced to jailbreak their phone in order to get root access to the phone and run applications not approved by Apple.



Despite the obvious advantages, jailbreaking has a slew of drawbacks as well. For one, users can rarely be at the latest version of iOS. Second, jailbreaking, without the implementation of the proper security measures (which goes for the majority of users), will render the phone and its important files vulnerable to malicious access, according to howtogeek.com.








Moreover, the usefulness of jailbreaking has diminished over time. As Apple adds more features to iOS with every iteration, a lot of jailbreak tweaks are rendered useless when Apple natively allows the functionality. Notable examples are Control Center, Notification Center, along with multitasking support.
You Need To Stay Updated With The Jailbreak Status

Every single jailbreak has relied on some sort of security vulnerability within iOS for iPhone, iPads, and the iPod Touch. Once the hacker has located the vulnerability, it’s used to gain unwarranted access to the system and take complete control. The control is then utilized to push and install the jailbreak on the iOS device. Once that’s done, the hacker creates a jailbreak tool around the exploit, which is distributed on the Internet for users.








Until the new version of iOS is released, the jailbreak will be preserved. If you mistakenly upgrade to the latest version, the jailbreak will be automatically removed and your phone will return back to stock. This leads to the loss of all the jailbreak tweaks and apps. This usually happens because Apple patches the exploit used for the previous jailbreak in the new OS, locking hackers out of the system once again. The hackers then start the process of discovering a new exploit, which often takes months. And with every hole Apple plugs, the search for a vulnerability gets harder.

In effect, you jailbreak your phone, you’ll be tied to the version of iOS you’ve jailbroken and will have to wait months until you can upgrade to the latest version. The upgrade will only be possible once hackers successfully manage to unearth another exploit, prepare a jailbreak tool, and release it. During this period, you’ll be locked out of accessing the new features which Apple has included in the latest iOS release. Even after the jailbreak tool is released, Apple soon releases another iteration of iOS, and the process of waiting begins yet again. There isn’t a way to circumvent this, and the inconvenience doesn’t pay off in the long run.
Your Phone Will Be Susceptible To Attack

Security analysts and tech writers have preached about the security vulnerabilities of iOS for years. However, only until a recent breach at an Italian firm, did the issue gain more traction. In a show of irony, the “Hacking Team,” which is an Italian security firm that specializes in hacking, was hacked itself. The hackers managed to gain access to a ton of internal company files, which were then released online for everyone to see. Leaked document have revealed that the company used tools to hack into jailbroken iPhones and lift all the content from them. However, stock iPhones aren’t insusceptible to attack. According to the leaks, the malware which was used to gain unwarranted access was installed only on jailbroken phones, since unauthorized apps cannot be installed on non-jailbroken iPhones.








This is not something unexpected. As mentioned before, every jailbreak uses a vulnerability in the iOS system, and once the proper jailbreak tool is released, the exploit is also revealed which any malicious hacker can use to gain unwarranted access to the phone.

Users who intend to keep their jailbreak, need to stay on the version of iOS which has the security hole present; if you update, you close the exploit and lose your jailbreak. If you want privacy and security of your data, you should stay away from jailbreaking your phone and keep your phone updated to the latest version of iOS with all the known security exploits patched.
Stability Issues

If you install verified applications from the App Store which run in their own sandbox, the base iOS system will remain unmodified and hence stable. Jailbreak tweaks are capable of modifying the internal OS files. In case an app malfunctions, it’ll take the iOS system down with it, while you will be faced with random reboots and Springboard crashes. The pro-jailbreak community will just tell to not install the erroneous tweaks, however, it’s highly unlikely to find a jailbroken phone which has never faced a jailbreak crash.

In some cases, an erroneous app can even cause an iPhone to get so unstable and buggy that a complete restore is required to resolve the issues.
The Need For Jailbreaking Is Diminishing

The prime cause for jailbreaking, in most cases, is to install any of the tweaks available on Cydia, in order to modify the system in ways which Apple wouldn’t normally allow. This usually entails addition of crucial features which are present on competing platforms but not on Apple’s.


But realistically, as Apple adds more features to iOS, the need for apps which provide the same features isn’t there anymore. For example, notable jailbreak tweaks allow for features such as background apps, inter-app data sharing, and split-screen multitasking, all of which are being introduced in iOS 9.

Unless it’s absolutely crucial, which it isn’t in most cases, why even jailbreak a phone for a single tweak? The detrimental effects of jailbreaking far outweigh the benefits, so keep in mind what you’re forfeiting simply for a jailbreak tweak or tow.