Earlier this year, Apple updated iOS to block passcode cracking tools like GrayKey (used by police and government law enforcement officers).
But the original iOS 11.4.1 patch wasn’t perfect, with researchers still finding ways around it.
That seems to have changed with the release of iOS 12 last month, which a recent Forbes report notes appears to have completely blocked the GrayKey tool, preventing it from cracking the password of any devices running the latest software.
It’s not clear what Apple’s done to lock out GrayKey.
GrayKey first made waves earlier this year as a tool specifically developed and sold to police departments to break passwords on iPhones for use in investigations.
But according to police officer Captain John Sherwin (from the Rochester Police Department in Minnesota), it’s a “fairly accurate assessment” to say that Apple has stopped GrayKey from unlocking updated devices.
Whatever Apple did to block GrayKey here, though, chances are that Grayshift — the company that develops GrayKey — is already looking for a workaround to continue to bypass Apple’s password systems. »