Apple patches exploits in iOS 6.1.3 beta 2 that break evasi0n jailbreak

Apple released iOS 6.1.3 beta 2 to developers just last week with enhancements to Maps in Japan, as well as the promise of a fix for the highly publicized Lock Screen bug. While we noted at the time that the update could fix exploits used for the recent evasi0n jailbreak, the evad3rs team has now had time to test the update and confirmed to Forbes that 6.1.3 breaks evasi0n. Team member David Wang, aka @planetbeing, explained Apple has patched one of the five critical exploits that evasi0n is currently using:

Wang tells me that he’s analyzed the 6.1.3 beta 2 update and found that it patches at least one of the five bugs the jailbreak exploits, namely a flaw in the operating system’s time zone settings. The beta update likely signals the end of using evasi0n to hack new or updated devices after the update is released to users, says Wang, who says he’s still testing the patch to see which other vulnerabilities exploited by the jailbreak might no longer exist in the new operating system.

Wang noted that the team could replace the one patched vulnerability, but it’s likely the team will be “starting from scratch” if Apple continues patching the known exploits:

When Apple’s update arrives, the team of jailbreakers known as the evad3rs may still have more tricks in store. Wang tells me that the group has discovered enough bugs in Apple’s mobile operating system to nearly build a new iOS jailbreak even if all the bugs they currently use are fixed. But then again, Wang says he hasn’t yet been able to check Apple’s patch for every bug it might fix–either the ones evasi0n employs or those he and his fellow hackers had hoped to keep secret for their next jailbreak. “If they patch most of the bugs,” Wang says, “Then we’re starting from scratch.”

Forbes speculated that Apple took longer to patch exploits for evasi0n compared to past jailbreaks because it was a standalone tool and not a web app like the previous Jailbreakme 3.0 release. Evasion has been released for about three weeks, and it could stick around for another month or so before Apple publicly releases 6.1.3. The jailbreak is said to be the most popular yet with a record 7 million downloads in the first four days.

http://9to5mac.com