Category Archives: Hack

How to Hack AT&T iPhone 5 or iPad mini Carrier Update File to Speed Up LTE

Published on May 20, 2013 by Richard Ker

Do you think you’re not getting enough speed from your LTE? This hack might double or triple your LTE performance.

It is mankind’s instincts to go for speed. Internet speed has significantly increased for the past few years but it’s still not fast enough for many of us. If you’re one those folks who always strive to find something faster, then this hack is really for you.

If you’re interested with the technical aspects of this hack, read on. Otherwise, just head on straight to the tutorials below. In the carrier update file which you occasionally get from iTunes, band preferences were intentionally set by AT&T to limit you to a certain band rather than the band giving off the strongest signal, when available, both with LTE and HSPA+, according to the founder of this hack.

The same hack from T-Mobile LTE was released last week, which essentially modified the carrier file and ultimately improves your iPhone or iPad network performance with enhanced band management. In order to be able to hack something like this, one must have deep understanding of latest mobile network systems and how cell towers around you operate.

Before you begin, please proceed only at your own risks. Remember to backup your iPhone or iPad in case something goes wrong.

Steps:

1. Download the hacked carrier update in the link below (in order to protect the download link from leechers, please support by Liking, +1 or Tweet below)

Like, Tweet or +1 to reveal this free content, we will not bite, we promise.

2. Once downloaded, allow iTunes to accept carrier bundle updates by doing on these:

A. If you are using either a 32-bit or 64-bitWindows, you will need to open command prompt (Start > type CMD) and then type the following followed by enter:

  • 64-bit: cd C:\Program Files (x86)\iTunes then type: iTunes.exe/setPrefInt carrier-testing 1
  • 32-bit: cd C:\Program Files\iTunes then type: iTunes.exe/setPrefInt carrier-testing 1

B. If you own a Mac, open terminal and type the following and hit enter:

  • defaults write com.apple.iTunes carrier-testing -bool true

3. Once that’s done, click on the tab for your iPhone 5 and click “Update” or “Check For Update” while holding down the Alt/Option key for Mac or the Shift key for Windows.

4. Point it to the file you just downloaded in step 2, select the file and click Open. iTunes will now update your carrier settings.

5. Reboot your iPhone to experience a faster connection on your iPhone.

In any case if you encounter a problem while doing the steps above, you can always roll back by doing the following:

  • Non Jailbroken iPhone/iPad: Go to Settings > General > Reset > Erase All Content and Settings and Restore From Backup.
  • Jailbroken iPhone/iPad: Using iFile or similar, Go to var/mobile/Library/Carrier bundles/iPhone and delete the ATT_US.bundle folder and another folder called “Overlay” located in var/mobile/Library/Carrier Bundles. Reboot your iPhonedevice. In some cases, a second reboot may be required if the data indicator is only showing “3G”. This behavior is completely normal.

While some people may notice some speed increment, the hacker also put up a disclaimer saying:

This hack does NOT guarantee that you will see any dramatic changes or any change at all as certain areas are simply limited because of population density, natural features that degrade signal, the traffic on a specific tower, and even the amount of spectrum the tower is limited to as not all LTE towers have been upgraded to 10MHz on the downlink for higher bandwidth support. If you feel this hack has not helped you, we have provided a way back to defaults, if you choose to do so.

Well, we do hope that it’s going to be beneficial for you and all did go smoothly. If you think your network speed is faster, do share your experience below.

It’s Possible to Track Your Stolen or Missing iPhone with its ICCID and CTN

Published on May 19, 2013 by Richard Ker

Did you lose your iPhone recently? There’s still hope of finding it, or at least get a step closer to finding who has it.

Despite how advance technology has developed, it’s still a challenge to locate stolen electronic devices. Apple’s Find My iPhone app may helped some people, but it gets pretty useless once the device is turned off and everything on it is wiped out.

If you think you’ve tried everything to get your iPhone back, you’re probably wrong. Let me tell you why.

Each iPhone is unique because it has its own IMEI number, serial number and more recently it can also be tied to an ICCID number (you can find all these under Settings, General, About). ICCID is the short form for Integrated Circuit Card ID.

The Police have two methods for tracking your iPhone when it’s stolen, they can use your phone number or your IMEI number. The problem with your phone number is that thieves can easily just discard your SIM card and replace it another.

Now, this is how it gets interesting. If someone uses a different SIM card with your missing iPhone, the SIM’s card ICCID number is registered onto Apple’s database after the iPhone is restored and activated via iTunes.

It’s more difficult for the police to find your iPhone based on the IMEI, however, using the ICCID, they can query this number from carriers such as AT&T or T-Mobile and find the mobile number tied to it. Take a look at this thread on Apple’s support forum.

On some cases, we can also find the CTN associated to your iPhone. CTN stands for Cellular Telephone Number, and ultimately the number that you’re looking for. Please take note that ICCID or CTN will not be updated on Apple’s database if the iPhone hasn’t been restored or activated on iTunes. In the example above, I was able to get the CTN after querying the Apple database. The CTN is also the same as FaceTime number.

I know that it’s going to be a long shot to locate your stolen iPhone. However, with this piece of information that we can help you get, you will be a step closer to find who has your iPhone, who can either be a thief or a second hand buyer of your iPhone.

Yes! I would like to get help finding my stolen or missing iPhone!

Restore iPhone without Using iTunes and Keep Untethered Jailbreak with SemiRestore

Published on May 19, 2013 by Richard Ker

A few days ago I posted an article about how a new tool called SemiRestore that can restore your iPhone without losing your precious jailbreak. Here are the steps.

SemiRestore is one of the most exciting iPhone jailbreaking tools going to be made available for free to public in recent times. It’s not actually a tool to jailbreak your iPhone but rather it helps you restore your iPhone without wiping your jailbreak. In other words, this program will restore your iPhone or any iDevice without actually using iTunes.

This is extremely useful for newer devices such as iPhone 4S or iPhone 5 as currently there’s no method of restoring it without installing the latest iOS. Installing the latest iOS means you will lose your jailbreak and there’s no way to jailbreak it until the next available jailbreak becomes available, and that’s usually take a long time.

SemiRestore is currently in Beta but will be made available to public very soon. When I last checked the progress is currently at 65%.

Before you begin, please be sure to backup your data just in case something goes wrong.

How to use SemiRestore to Restore iPhone, iPad or iPod touch (Mac Version)

Step 1: Download SemiRestore from the official website once it’s publicly available.

Step 2: Install OpenSSH and APT 0.7 strict from Cydia

Step 3: Open Terminal on your Mac

Step 4: Do a change directory command (cd) to your downloads folder

Step 5: Run the following command to copy SemiRestore to your device:

scp SemiRestore root@192.168.1.101:/var/root/SemiRestore

Note: You will need to change the IP address to the Wi-Fi IP address of your device. The default password is alpine

(you can check your iPhone’s IP address by going to Settings, WiFi, tap on the WiFi network your device is currently connected to)

Step 6: SSH into your iPhone using the following command

ssh root@192.168.1.101

Step 7: Navigate to the /var/root directory on your device. There you should see the SemiRestore file.

Step 8: Secure the SemiRestore file with this command:

chmod +x SemiRestore

Step 9: Run this command:

./SemiRestore-beta5

Step 10: You will see the following command prompts on your terminal window:

Step 11: Type an ’0′ and hit Enter. SemiRestore will begin processing a device restore.

Please be patient while SemiRestore performs all the work for you. Depending how much data you have on your device, it may take a bit of time for the process to complete. At times you will find Terminal seems to hang but please be assured that it’s busy doing its thing. Your iPhone will reboot a few times and don’t interrupt even if you see the setup screen.

Once everything is done, you will find that your iPhone is now “fully restored” with the same iOS version. Cydia is still present on your home screen but everything else will be set to factory default. Your previously installed apps and other tweaks will no longer be available.

Now let’s wait until it’s publicly available, I’m sure it won’t take long.

SemiRestore Restores or Refreshes iOS 5 – iOS 6.1.2 without Losing Your Untethered Jailbreak

Published on May 17, 2013 by Richard Ker

If you ever need to do a full restore on your iPhone, you’re usually left with no choice but to update it to the latest iOS and risk losing your untethered jailbreak. SemiRestore will solve this problem.

If you’re a seasoned iPhone jailbreaker and love Cydia tweaks, at one point in time you may have installed something from Cydia and messed up your iPhone. Usually you are left with no choice but to do a full restore using iTunes. That’s a pain because if you have an iPhone 4S or iPhone 5, there’s no way you can install the same iOS version that has an untethered jailbreak. This is due to Apple’s restrictions and you can only install or restore to the latest iOS.

Let me give you an example. Assume that you currently have an iPhone 5 running iOS 6.1.2 which is jailbroken with evasi0n. You were just trying a couple of jailbreak tweaks on Cydia but suddenly your iPhone 5 keeps on crashing. That’s going to be a pain because the only way to make your device into a usable state again is to do a full iTunes restore. You can only install iOS 6.1.4 (currently the latest version) because Apple is no longer signing iOS 6.1.2. That means you will lose your jailbreak and you will have to wait until the next untethered jailbreak becomes available. It can be a long and painful wait.

SemiRestore, developed by @coolstarorg, is a wonderful and a new addition to jailbreaking tools will allow you to refresh your iOS without having to do a full restore. You won’t need to lose your untethered jailbreak ever! It takes out SHSH and APTickets out of the iOS restore equations that enables you to restore your iOS quickly and painlessly. It’s fully compatible with all jailbroken iPhone, iPod touch, iPad and iPad mini models running iOS 5.0 through 6.1.2.

There are already some basic information on his website including requirements:

  • 5-10 minutes of your time!
  • A computer running Windows or Mac OS X
  • OpenSSH and APT 0.7 Strict (NOT THE LIB) installed on your device
  • An SSH client on your computer (USB version coming soon)

… and some FAQs:

Can I use this to go from firmware x to firmware y?

No, this only allows you to go to a fresh version of your current firmware.

Do I need SHSH blobs or APTickets for this semi-restore?

No, since this is not a full restore and is at the userland level, this doesn’t require blobs.

I have a question regarding the jailbreak process or jailbreaking in general.

Please go to the Jailbreak QA dedicated website or try /r/jailbreak on Reddit.

SemiRestore is currently in Beta stage but the developer may allow you to test it. Check out his Twitter here and send make a request by sending him a tweet if you’re interested to be part of the Beta testers. Some people who helped testing it already gave him rave reviews of this excellent tool.

Currently there’s no ETA of the release date but the website shows a progress bar to show the current status of the development. When I last checked it was already 60% done and at round 2 of Beta testing.

It has been a while since we last saw a tool like this that can benefit so many people in the jailbreaking community. One thing for sure that iDevice jailbreaking is not dead and will continue to reign for many years to come.

Turn New Yahoo Weather App as iOS Default with YahooWeatherisBetter Jailbreak Tweak

Published on May 2, 2013 by Richard Ker

If you love the new Yahoo Weather App you should make it your iPhone’s default weather app. Here’s how to do it.

As part of Yahoo’s effort to re-establish themselves as game players, they recently launched their new Yahoo weather app for iOS. It is probably one of the best looking, or if not, the best weather app out there. The interface is clean, crisp, dashboard-like information including fancy animation for the wind speed. It also uses real images of the weather location from Flickr as background.

If you compare it with the default iOS weather app, it’s simply light years ahead. Probably Apple will revamp its original weather app in iOS 7, which should be released anytime before end of the year. In the meantime you should download and install Yahoo’s free weather app. Once you’ve done that, you can turn it as your iOS’ default weather app by installing a jailbreak tweak called YahooWeatherisBetter.

YahooWeatherisBetter is a simple jailbreak tweak that changes your default iOS weather app to Yahoo Weather App. Installing it is easy and free, launch Cydia and search for it under the BigBoss repo. Then you have a few toggle buttons available to tweak it as shown below.

The menu above will be presented to you under Settings. Just tap on Enable Tweak will make Yahoo Weather App as the default iOS weather app instantly. You can also replace the icon (or reroute as the developer calls it). It might be important for you to know that it doesn’t reroute Siri’s weather result. So if you regularly use Siri to provide you weather reports, you may have contradicting results although this isn’t such a big deal.

Well, that’s a free and simple jailbreak tweak you should consider pairing with your beautiful Yahoo Weather app.