It didn’t take long for iPhone developer and hacker Comex to jailbreak the Apple iPad 2. An image showing an iPad 2 running Cydia, a Debian package management system for the iOS, surfaced online a mere two days after the new tablet launched.
Cydia is a software application that allows users to find and download jailbroken apps and software for iOS devices. Now that the second-generation Apple tablet’s iOS 4.3 is cracked, users can load third-party applications that are not available on the App Store.
Comex claimed he would have had accomplished the jailbreak earlier if he hadn’t spent “1.5 days” looking for a new exploit. The “best kernel bug” had been closed in iOS 4.3, Comex said on Twitter.
Comex performed the hack remotely, “2,500 miles away,” according to a post by @iphone_dev. Since Comex didn’t have an iPad2, the hack was performed on iphone_dev’s device.
It’s not clear at this point if the jailbreak would be available for public download. “It will take some work to package it into a jailbreak,” Comex posted on Twitter. If it was ever made available, it’s likely there will be both Wi-Fi and 3G variants, Tom’s Guide speculated.
A different hacker, Stefan Esser, will be releasing an iOS 4.3 exploit before “next weekend,” according to VeryRite.com.
While Apple doesn’t approve of jailbreaking or using “unapproved” apps, those who wish to hack the tablet can, thanks to the DMCA exception added by the Library of Congress last July.