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hbgator

Fri 24 Aug, 2007


Hackers claim to untie Apple's iPhone from AT&T

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Hackers have found a way to use Apple Inc's <b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>(AAPL.O)<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> iPhone on networks other than AT&T Inc's <b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>(T.N)<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>,<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> opening up the coveted device to rival carriers and overseas customers,<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> according to a Web report on Friday.<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>
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A group called iPhoneSIMfree.com said it had developed a piece of software that,<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> when installed on an iPhone,<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> allows the use of rival mobile services such as T-Mobile,<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> according to widely followed technology blog Engadget.com.<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>
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AT&T has an exclusive two-year agreement to provide phone and data services for the iPhone in the United States.<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> Apple is in talks with carriers in several European countries to launch the device there by the end of the year.<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>
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Enabling the combination phone,<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> media player and Web browser to run on other networks <b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>-<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>-<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> known as <b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>"unlocking"<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> <b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>-<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>-<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> has been a stated goal of many hackers since the iPhone hit the market in late June.<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>
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<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>"The unlock process took only a couple of minutes.<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> From our end it was totally painless,<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>"<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> Engadget said.<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>
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Several other methods for unlocking the iPhone have emerged on the Internet in the past few weeks,<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> although they involve tinkering with the iPhone hardware or more complicated ways of bypassing the protections for AT&T's exclusivity.<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>
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AT&T spokesman Mark Siegel declined to comment on the Engadget report and an Apple spokesman could not be immediately reached.<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> An e-mail sent to iPhoneSIMfree.com was not immediately answered.<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>
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The iPhone is based on GSM wireless technology,<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> which is deployed widely throughout Europe but used in the United States only by AT&T and Deutsche Telekom's <b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>(DTEGn.DE)<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> T-Mobile.<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>
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<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>"Inside the United States it's not going to be a huge deal,<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> outside the United States it's probably going to be a big deal until Apple gets agreements in place with partners there,<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>"<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> said Jeremy Horwitz,<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> editor-in-chief of iLounge.com,<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> which tracks news of Apple products.<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>
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The hacker victory could also be fleeting since it may be possible for Apple to render the unlock process useless with an update to the iPhone software,<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b> Horwitz said.<b style="color:#FFA34F"></b>