iOS 'uber hacker' Comex no longer working for Apple

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Comments

  • Reply 41 of 57

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by ulfoaf View Post




    I suspect you are right. Apple would probably rather have him working for them making devices more difficult to jailbreak, but the next best thing for them is to have him stop. It isn't coincidental that they put that in a contract.


     


    What? A hacker who doesn't fit into corporate guidelines and rules? I can't imagine that! :>D



    Our hackers fit in the corporate rules. Of course, that's pretty much what we do...

  • Reply 42 of 57
    charlitunacharlituna Posts: 7,217member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by logandigges View Post


    DAMN! I didn't know about the contract thing. And that sucks because now Apple has no reason to rehire him since he can't be a jailbreaker now. Where is he going to work? What is going to do?



     


    He's not the only jailbreak hacker out there. This was a deal to be a 'remote' intern, ie while in NY at school. Who is to say that the deal prevents him from still being offered a job in Cupe for the summer like he had this year, doing the same thing he did for them before. Finding possible exploits in upcoming iOS releases so they can close the holes before anyone has a chance to use them

  • Reply 43 of 57
    charlitunacharlituna Posts: 7,217member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by rgroves View Post



    They didnt want him in the first place they set up this contract because they know what he is capable of and wanted to take him out of the jailbreak community by making it a restriction in his contract


     


    yeah there was zero appeal in hiring a guy that is a wiz at finding exploitable holes to go over upcoming software to see if there are any such holes. 

  • Reply 44 of 57
    charlitunacharlituna Posts: 7,217member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by BrianCPA View Post


    Am I the only person that (1) has never jailbroken any of their devices or (2) had the desire to?



     


    Nope. I have seen little to no tweaks worth risking bonking my whole device. And far too many stories about security risks etc. 

  • Reply 45 of 57
    charlitunacharlituna Posts: 7,217member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by verucabong View Post



    Just because of an email not replied to?? Seems odd...


     


    Not at all. 


     


    They send him an email saying that they want to offer him a job working 'from home' and to print out the attached contract, sign it and return it to them by X date if he wants the gig. If he needs more time for some reason to at least reply by X date and let them know what's up. Otherwise if they don't hear from him they will assume he doesn't want the job. 


     


    He doesn't reply on time, they yank the offer they stated they would assume he didn't want. His bad

  • Reply 46 of 57
    charlitunacharlituna Posts: 7,217member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by lilgto64 View Post


     


    Really? In a time when probably 90% or more of all email traffic is spam, spoofs, and various scams, you are going to depend on a single time-sensitve email to determine the continuation of an employment contract? 


     



     


    A kid with his level of computer skills certainly knows how to set up an email rule that if anything comes in from any @apple.com email address (which would be either a receipt or someone at corp) it goes in a special "read this right the F away" mailbox. 

  • Reply 47 of 57
    toestoes Posts: 55member
    I jailbreak my iPhone and have for a long time. It makes a lot of sense: if you want(ed):

    1. Notification center before Apple implemented it. (Intelliscreen is still more powerful than native OS version)
    2. Camera button on lockscreen before Apple implemented it.
    3. Hide built-in apps that you never use, or you use better versions of (such as weather app, e.g.)
    4. Bluetooth tethering / wifi hotspot without paying monthly fees to carriers
    5. Scrolling docks, folders ...
    6. An app (f.lux) that changes backlighting temperature (warmer) for nighttime (incandescent) conditions
    7. A password app that autofills when updating AppStore software (better now in iOS 6, since Apple is not asking for those anymore)
    8. A flashlight button on the lockscreen
    9. A paper clip file attachment option in e-mail
    10. Some fun customization tweaks
    11. Mirroring on the iPad prior to Apple implementing it
    12. Video recording on the original and iPhone 3G
    13. Wireless streaming ("AirPlay") before Apple implemented it
    etc.

    btw: the phone (currently 4s) runs as stable as stock (including specific apps)
  • Reply 48 of 57
    solipsismxsolipsismx Posts: 19,566member
    toes wrote: »
    I jailbreak my iPhone and have for a long time. It makes a lot of sense: if you want(ed):
    1. Notification center before Apple implemented it. (Intelliscreen is still more powerful than native OS version)
    2. Camera button on lockscreen before Apple implemented it.
    3. Hide built-in apps that you never use, or you use better versions of (such as weather app, e.g.)
    4. Bluetooth tethering / wifi hotspot without paying monthly fees to carriers
    5. Scrolling docks, folders ...
    6. An app (f.lux) that changes backlighting temperature (warmer) for nighttime (incandescent) conditions
    7. A password app that autofills when updating AppStore software (better now in iOS 6, since Apple is not asking for those anymore)
    8. A flashlight button on the lockscreen
    9. A paper clip file attachment option in e-mail
    10. Some fun customization tweaks
    11. Mirroring on the iPad prior to Apple implementing it
    12. Video recording on the original and iPhone 3G
    13. Wireless streaming ("AirPlay") before Apple implemented it
    etc.
    btw: the phone (currently 4s) runs as stable as stock (including specific apps)

    1) Moot
    2) Moot
    3) I used to do this but after awhile I stuck them on a back page. Now I just put them in a folder labeled with the ? symbol on the back page.
    4) I used to JB mine for the tethering but AT&T finally kicked me off of Unlimited/Unlimited because I was breaking my contractual obligation.
    5) To me that seems overly cluttered for the desktop.
    6) I can't imagine I'd even want to try that. What I would like is a hidden rotate gesture on the Lock Screen so I can turn the brightness all the way up/down when leaving/entering from a well lit area. For example, the movies. This is especially difficult if you just get outside in the daylight and you had your phone on minimum brightness to use prior to the trailer. It's hard to make out anything before your eyes adjust. A circular pattern on the Lock Screen could make that a breeze.
    7) Apple already does this within the system but it sounds like you're asking for a 3rd-party solution which will likely never come.
    8) That would be nice.
    9) I'm not sure what you mean. You can already attach photos and videos to an email you're writing. The other thing would fall under #7 in that you can't have all the apps un-sandboxed and still ensure security.
    10) No matter what they include it will always be too little and too late. It's the nature of JB community v a corporation.
    11) Speaking of mirroring, I'd like to have a way to remote into someone's iDevice to assist them.
    12) That was never good and Apple couldn't have made it much better. Imagine the outcry if Apple had implemented such a poor excuse of video and called it a feature.
    13) What Apple has done with AirPlay far exceeds any streaming that was ever produced by the JB community.
  • Reply 49 of 57
    toestoes Posts: 55member
    solipsismx wrote: »
    1) Moot
    2) Moot
    3) I used to do this but after awhile I stuck them on a back page. Now I just put them in a folder labeled with the ? symbol on the back page.
    4) I used to JB mine for the tethering but AT&T finally kicked me off of Unlimited/Unlimited because I was breaking my contractual obligation.
    5) To me that seems overly cluttered for the desktop.
    6) I can't imagine I'd even want to try that. What I would like is a hidden rotate gesture on the Lock Screen so I can turn the brightness all the way up/down when leaving/entering from a well lit area. For example, the movies. This is especially difficult if you just get outside in the daylight and you had your phone on minimum brightness to use prior to the trailer. It's hard to make out anything before your eyes adjust. A circular pattern on the Lock Screen could make that a breeze.
    7) Apple already does this within the system but it sounds like you're asking for a 3rd-party solution which will likely never come.
    8) That would be nice.
    9) I'm not sure what you mean. You can already attach photos and videos to an email you're writing. The other thing would fall under #7 in that you can't have all the apps un-sandboxed and still ensure security.
    10) No matter what they include it will always be too little and too late. It's the nature of JB community v a corporation.
    11) Speaking of mirroring, I'd like to have a way to remote into someone's iDevice to assist them.
    12) That was never good and Apple couldn't have made it much better. Imagine the outcry if Apple had implemented such a poor excuse of video and called it a feature.
    13) What Apple has done with AirPlay far exceeds any streaming that was ever produced by the JB community.

    The important point to your "moot" comments is that Apple only implemented this much later, and I think the fact that there are useful items that (even for you) are desirable, makes the point pro-jailbreak, of course everyone's mileage will vary. I was merely responding to the expressions of incredulity in earlier posts. Btw:there is a lockscreen customization option that adds a brightness slider. :)
  • Reply 50 of 57


    JB makes sense to those who would like something different. If you don't like it don't do it, its as simple as that.


     


    If you they type of person that loves to tinker and own an iPhone then JB is for you otherwise...nothing to see here.

  • Reply 51 of 57
    philboogiephilboogie Posts: 7,675member
    philboogie wrote: »
    OT: won't these custom icons get killed at every software update? Save . releases?

    Yeah, and it bugs me. Same thing happens with App Store apps*, which are supposed to be delta updates, aren't they? I guess I'm used to going through the motions of Application/(right-click)Show Package Contents/Contents/Resources and dragging in my custom icon again. But I do use a fair few of them. 


    [very nice screendump here]


    *Specifically The Unarchiver, whose icon and filetypes I change to match Archive Utility**, save for EXE files, which I change to the old (actually halfway decent) Windows icon so that I can parse those at a glance. 


    **Even further off-topic, do you have 10.8.2? Is Archive Utility completely and utterly broken for you, too? It freezes every time I use it and has to be force quit. I have to right-click ZIPs and use The Unarchiver… 

    1. I don't think the actual location of the icons in the packages change, so maybe you could script it (?)
    2. Quite a few things got 'broken' at my end with 10.8: Safari 6: no Activity Window, no RSS in Mail or Safari, the unified address bar in Safari isn't good at picking up my history. Even if I type bladiebla.com it is still Bing-ing my address; need to prefix it with www.
    3. The Archive Utility works at my end though, don't know what happened t your end. Could it be a 'change-of-icon'?
    4. Is that screendump Launchpad? Does it, in your opinion, work 'faster' than regular folder list in the Dock? I never understood why we are having two options to start an application, other than creating the iOS look that is.
    5. Damn, sometimes OT discussions are better than the actual article LOL
  • Reply 52 of 57


    Originally Posted by PhilBoogie View Post

    …Safari 6: no Activity Window…


     


    THAT ticks me off to no end. They didn't bring it back in 6.0.1, so we better start screaming for it in 6.1… 


     



    Even if I type bladiebla.com it is still Bing-ing my address; need to prefix it with www.


     


    Really? I have a problem with history whereby if I visit one URL of one website once, it will be the first result for autofill, instead of my bookmark that I have had for ten years and which is in my history over 4,000 times. GO SHOVE A RAKE IN YOUR EAR, SAFARI. I mean, who on Earth thought this was a good predictive system by any stretch of anyone's imagination?!


     



    3. The Archive Utility works at my end though, don't know what happened t your end. Could it be a 'change-of-icon'?


     


    I've been changing its icon since Leopard and this is the first time it has just refused to work. And it's just an icon, too! 


     



    4. Is that screendump Launchpad? Does it, in your opinion, work 'faster' than regular folder list in the Dock? I never understood why we are having two options to start an application, other than creating the iOS look that is.


     


    Yep. I had myself an Applications folder Stack before I popped on the first DP of Lion, and I said to myself, "Self, give it a go." I got rid of that Stack and tried Launchpad instead, and I have been ever since. My only complaint is folders staying open after you've opened an application within them. That's just stupid. I don't like that in iOS, either. 


     


    As far as changed usability in this regard, instead of having to scroll the Stack, I just have clicking to do. All of my applications fit onto one screen in Launchpad, so there's no swiping or looking around to do. Everything is one or two clicks away. And while I don't use all of the Apple applications frequently enough to necessarily "warrant" them receiving "one-click" status (I use HandBrake more than many, for example), I just like how they look. So they're all right there. 


     


    I guess I can see how some people might want folders inside folders in Launchpad (maybe), but it's interesting to note that Apple already has that system in place in iCloud-referenced files on iOS. You can see folders within folders, and that's a key feature to make beautiful and intuitive before they're able to switch the desktop fully to multitouch. Yeah, I know, paranoia about "hiding the filesystem", but Apple won't be doing that on the desktop. I mean, they certainly will, given that it's far easier for regular people to understand that the files such-and-such application sees are the files it can open. But if you want to see it, you won't be prevented.


     



    5. Damn, sometimes OT discussions are better than the actual article LOL


     


    Well, there's truly not much else to say on this.


     


    Guy worked there, doesn't anymore, wasn't fired, is okay with not working there. No drama. And since we covered the fact that he can't legally do jailbreaking anymore and how his work will probably prevent most jailbreaks in the future entirely, this may be the first thread in a good long while that has actually wrapped up before puttering out.

  • Reply 53 of 57
    I left my feedback on the Activity Monitor @ Apple. Hope others will, too.

    You're quite inspirational; I'm gonna try out Launchpad for some time. Agree on the folders-should-auto-close. I also understand the paranoia some people have with Apple hiding more and more. Well founded, in some cases. Like the Activity Monitor.

    Ha! HandBrake! I'm in the process of digitizing a boatload of video tapes. Getting DV from my Canopus and easy converting to H.264
  • Reply 54 of 57
    philboogiephilboogie Posts: 7,675member
    philboogie wrote: »
    OT: won't these custom icons get killed at every software update? Save . releases?

    Yeah, and it bugs me.

    You probably know this, but in any case:
  • Reply 55 of 57
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,176member


    Looks like one Apple hacker gone but another takes his place. The latest is a former Microsoft security "hacker", Kristen Paget.


     


    http://www.wired.com/wiredenterprise/2012/12/apple-hires-hacker/?utm_source=Contextly&utm_medium=RelatedLinks&utm_campaign=Interesting

  • Reply 56 of 57


    Originally Posted by PhilBoogie View Post

    You probably know this, but in any case:


     


    Wait, it's free now? I never considered it seriously before because it always felt sort of bloated and complicated to me. 


     


    So it… keeps icons in place across point updates? It says "changing system icons won't work forever", and "can't change Mac App Store icons", but I do both manually right now. I dunno. Thanks for the tip, though.

  • Reply 57 of 57
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,176member
    DAMN! I didn't know about the contract thing. And that sucks because now Apple has no reason to rehire him since he can't be a jailbreaker now. Where is he going to work? What is going to do?
    He's announced Google as his next stop. Pretty surprising.
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