Translation of http://mac1.no/node/5209

iPhone - can it be hacked?

The big question for many iPhone owners outside the USA is the whether the use of other SIMs will be possible. Many people are buying phones on eBay or through friends who are visiting the USA, but will it be possible to use these with Telenor and NetCom [translator: Norwegian telcos].

We got in touch with 'geohot', a person who has recently become known in the iPhone-scene, especially by those looking for an AT&T-free phone, and we did an interview. (A=interviewer, B=geohot).

A) So who are you? And why are you doing this?
B) I am a 17 year old boy from New Jersey. I've been programming since before I started school, and I've always been on the lookout for challenges. I love being part of a team like this, and at the same time I would really like to use my iPhone with T-Mobile. If I have to use AT&T, I have to pay the bill myself.

A) So you're only 17, yet you already know so much?
B) Yes, I've been playing with computers my whole life. My dad had an Apple II when I was a kid, and that's how my career started.

A) What about the iPhone, you've (translator: plural you) hacked many of the roadblocks so far, but with what you currently know, is it still realistic to unlock the phone?
B) Absolutely, unlocking the phone requires that the network personalization lock is turned off. We have to find the code to unlock the phone and then send a command to the phone. Every telco has an IMSI. AT&T's EMSI is hardcoded in the phone, so when you use the phone, the EMSI of the phone is compared to the network. If they match, the phone works and vice versa. What we have to do is remove this check so that you can use the phone with other networks.

A) DVD-Jon was the first to release a method to activate the phone without registering with AT&T, has he gotten involved any further in iPhone development?
B) He is best at what he did, spoofing other servers. He's been hanging out in our development channel lately, but has not done or said much.

A) What about 3rd party software? Apple gave developers the ability to create applications for the iPhone using Ajax and Web 2.0, something that was clearly not good enough for the developer community. What are the chances of seeing software from others than Apple on the phone?
B) Applications are not signed, so we can upload new applications that work, but iPhone is the first phone that uses Mach-O and ARM, which means that we have to create developer tools that work with these. Nightwatch is one of the people working on this. Since this is Apple's first ARM device, we haven't seen Mach-O on this platform before.

A) Do you think Apple will come up with ways to block the unlocking?
B) Possibly, but I wonder if Apple wants the iPhone to be unlocked. They'll sell more phones, if anyone would have a problem with this it would be AT&T.

A) Do you have an ETA on the unlocking of the iPhone?
B) Friday the 13th, today actually. Everything is in place, the only thing we lack is the code that unlocks the phone. I think we'll have the first iPhone unlocked by midnight, but it will take a fews days before we can make a tool available. We need to test it and make sure it works first.

A) Thanks for the interview. Is there anything you would like to add?
B) Not really, just stay tuned in the near future!

We thank for the interview, and would like to remind you that it is not illegal to unlock your phone. Not in the USA or Norway, which means we'll soon have phones that work with Norwegian telcos.

In the meantime, we can enjoy the world's coolest iPod with Wi-Fi, Mail and Safari. Read more on the iPhone Wiki.