Jailbreaking is where you deliberately hack or exploit your own device to free it from restrictions imposed by the vendor of the operating system running on it.
Apple, for example, locks down iPhones and iPads so that they can only run software downloaded from the App Store, and so that you can only read certain files stored on the device.
In theory, “jailing” a device serves many purposes:
If you’ve bought the device outright with your own after-tax income, especially if you paid an unsubsidised price, and you happen to prefer Windows to iOS, or Linux to Windows…
…why shouldn’t you be allowed to switch?
If you buy a car from Ford, for instance, you can fill up with fuel from Shell, or BP, or anyone you like who supplies fuel in compliance with the law – you don’t have to use Ford petrol, or put Ford air in your tyres, or Ford fluids in your cooling system.
In theory, jailbreaking serves many purposes:
Apple, for example, locks down iPhones and iPads so that they can only run software downloaded from the App Store, and so that you can only read certain files stored on the device.
In theory, “jailing” a device serves many purposes:
- It gives the vendor, who may have subsidised the cost of the device, a greater chance to recoup that investment, by requiring you shop at the company store. (This is a bit like buying a cheap mobile phone that is locked to a specific network provider, in countries where that is permitted.)
- It may improve security, by preventing you downloading software from untrusted sources, and by making the device more resistant to hackers who might otherwise be able to trick the device into revealing personal information stored on it.
- It may reduce piracy, by making it harder for you to make unofficial, unlawful use of copyrighted content you downloaded officially and legally.
If you’ve bought the device outright with your own after-tax income, especially if you paid an unsubsidised price, and you happen to prefer Windows to iOS, or Linux to Windows…
…why shouldn’t you be allowed to switch?
If you buy a car from Ford, for instance, you can fill up with fuel from Shell, or BP, or anyone you like who supplies fuel in compliance with the law – you don’t have to use Ford petrol, or put Ford air in your tyres, or Ford fluids in your cooling system.
In theory, jailbreaking serves many purposes:
- It gives you, the purchaser and owner of the device, the right to get the most out of it, and to enjoy it in ways the vendor may not have thought of, at your own cost.
- It may improve security, by allowing you to patch vulnerabilities and tighten security settings yourself, before official updates – which typically deserve and require wide-scale testing – are available.
- It may allow you to form a clearer picture of what goes on under the bonnet, notably what sort of information the vendor collects about you, how safely it is stored, and how it is shared.