Apple suspects 250,000 iPhones could be unlocked

Apple estimates over 250,000 iPhones are unlocked for use with other networksApple has released some numbers on iPhone sales and came to the conclusion that a lot more iPhones than most had suspected were actually purchased with the intention of unlocking and running on networks other than AT&T, likely overseas.

In the report, Apple guessed that as many as 250,000 of the 1.4 million iPhones sold were purchased by those with the intention of unlocking them and possibly reselling them to overseas customers to use on other networks. AT&T is currently the only approved carrier in the US to provide service for the iPhone.

In an effort to cut down on this, Apple issued a firmware update for the iPhone and the iPod Touch which would essentially “brick” the iPhone if it had been illegally unlocked. However, it was only a matter of weeks before hackers were able to work around the update and allow owners of unlocked iPhones to install the update and still be able to use their phones.

Apple has been having the same trouble with keeping hackers from creating software to allow the installation of third party applications on the phone, citing that this is not been allowed due to the security risks that come with opening up the platform. Recently Jobs and Apple have conceded some and have made plans to open up the iPhone platform and stop the cycle of hacking and blocking starting in February of 2008. It’s unlikely however that we’ll see the same thing happen with unlocking the phone for other carriers in the US in the near future due to the common exclusive deals phone makers create with carriers, in this case Apple and AT&T.

http://www.slipperybrick.com/2007/10/iphone-unlocked-250000/