Hackers make progress in cracking iPhone 3G

A group of hackers seems to have come a step closer to fully unlocking the Apple iPhone 3G. They got access to the core of the system via the baseband processor.

The hacker group iPhone Dev Team, also known for the Pwnage tool, has managed to dissect Apple’s iPhone 3G a bit further. The group has since become the so-called baseband processor of the telephone penetrated, so that they can communicate directly with the mobile phone’s Nucleus operating system using at commands. The first generation of iPhones was soon completely ‘opened up’ once hackers were able to communicate successfully with the baseband.

The iPhone Dev Team applied a terminal program, minicom, to communicate with the baseband processor. To this end, they used at commands, including self-developed commands, to control Nucleus. For example, they were able to generate a task list of all running processes. Should the team progress and get the iPhone completely under control via the baseband processor, that could mean the end of simlocks for the phone. The operating system of the iPhone 3G was previously cracked, so that developers can run software of their choice. However, the cracking of the ‘modem’ half of the phone is still ongoing.