Protection granted by the U.S. Copyright Office for people who modify their iPhones and other iOS devices so they can install apps not authorized by Apple (known as “jailbreaking”) is set to expire soon. That’s why the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is rallying supporters to sign a petition to renew the jailbreaking exemption law.
“The idea that you might face criminal charges because you altered your own property is totally unfair,” said Rebecca Jeschke, media relations director and digital rights analyst for the EFF. “The goal here is to make the law really clear.”
Three years ago the Copyright Office created an exemption to the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act DMCA that would protect users who jailbroke their phones from legal threats. Without this protection, anyone with a jailbroken iOS device could have legal issues looming over their heads. Currently, jailbreaking an iPhone just voids your Apple warranty.
On Wednesday, the EEF — the organization that filed for the initial jailbreaking exemption that was put into place three years ago — called on users of jailbroken devices to send their comments to the Copyright Office and explain why the exemption should be extended. The EFF also wants tablets and video game consoles to be included in the exemption.
Comments to the Copyright Office are due by Feb. 10 [link to .pdf comment form on copyright.gov]. You can also visit jailbreakingisnotacrime.org to sign a petition supported by EFF and Andrew “Bunnie” Huang, author of Hacking the Xbox.
“The law was never intended to limit legal activity with a device that was legally bought,” Jeschke said. “It’s not good policy for consumers.”
Jailbreaking devices is useful for uncovering security issues within it, or simply installing a modified operating system so you can access third-party app stores like Cydia.
When news of the 2010 smartphone jailbreaking exemption made headlines, Jeschke said lots of people were flabbergasted to hear this was an issue. Apple fought against the exemption in 2010 — “Which I think would be a surprise to people who spent money on the phone to own it,” Jeschke added.
Apple released a software update late last year for the iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPad 2 and iPad, plus the third and fourth generations of the iPod Touch. The update would bring phones to 4.3.4. and protect users from malicious PDFs, but also prevented users from jailbreaking the phone with JailBreakMe 3.0.
The tug-of-war between Apple and Android for customers is ongoing and constant. Fans of Apple appreciate the company’s focus on design, while critics say Apple’s closed operating system is confining.
Have you ever jailbroken your phone or considered it? What do you think about the exemption to the DMCA? Tell us in the comments.
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