BioProtect For iPhone 5s Released: Authenticate Individual Apps With Touch ID [VIDEO]

The addition of a gyroscope sensor into the iPhone is one example of the device’s evolution, but the release of the iPhone 5s and Apple’s Touch ID sensor is probably one of the most exciting developments that we have seen for a while. As you might expect, the jailbreak community is extremely keen to take advantage of that hardware, with Elias Limneos earlier teasing a new Touch ID compatible tweak and now making it available for all to grab from Cydia.

Apple’s own usage of the Touch ID sensor is commendable, if only a first step. Allowing users to unlock the device and authenticate App Store purchases with biometric detection is definitely a step in the right direction in making the overall iOS experience a lot more secure. However, there are a very large set of users, myself included, who would love to see that detection extended to prevent unauthorized access to other aspects of the device. As one of the most respected developers in the jailbreak community, Elias has recognized this need and built the BioProtect tweak to limit who can and can’t launch installed apps from the home screen.

Installation and usage of the package is fairly simple. Attempting to launch an app will present a user-facing alert that requests a finger to be placed on the Touch ID sensor, otherwise known as the Home button on the iPhone 5s. The sensed finger is then cross-referenced against the saved prints on the Touch ID chip. If a positive match is found then the app is successfully launched. Conversely, if a match cannot be made then an error message is provided.

BioProtect is a package that we probably all expected to see the light of day, and also one that could be hugely useful in iPhone 5s owners with children or serious privacy concerns.

BioProtect is available as a $2.99 download from the BigBoss repository. Due to the nature of this particular package, it is currently only available to be used with a jailbroken iPhone 5s with Apple’s Touch ID sensor.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgVYz4aNpLI

TetherMe For iOS 7 Released: Enable Free Personal Hotspot Tethering On iPhone And iPad

With the jailbreak having recently arrived for iOS 7, all of those tweaks made famous throughout the last few releases of the Apple mobile ecosystem are being frantically updated. Today it’s the turn of TetherMe, a popular hotspot app for iPhone and iPad, and as well as now offering full compatibility for iOS 7, it has also been boosted by support for the new 64-bit A7 processor based devices.

Although the iPhone and iPad does offer ‘Personal Hotspot’ access as a native feature, some carriers like to deactivate it, preventing users from using their cellular data for tethering purposes – until you pay them to enable the feature. But with TetherMe, a tool that essentially overrides this limitation, you can set your hotspot up exactly as you wish, and since this even works on older devices right the way back to the iPhone 3G, it may even be worth digging out your antiquated handset from the dusty drawer and using it as a makeshift Mi-Fi.

Having used TetherMe on an old iPhone 3G for quite a while, it has always been completely reliable, and as well as Wi-Fi, you can also readily tether through Bluetooth and USB – as per the stock offering.

Please note, however, that if your carrier has disabled tethering because you’re not permitted to use it on your current deal, then you must read very carefully. Many network operators have been known to automatically upgrade the service plans of those caught tethering without warning, and what’s more, you could incur sky-high additional charges depending on which company you do business with.

TetherMe works with iOS 4 through the latest iOS 7 thanks to the update, and costs $4.99. In my opinion, TetherMe is the go-to app for those looking to tether on their iOS device, and for a cent shy of five bucks, is definitely good value for money.

You can source TetherMe over at the BigBoss repository, which will be in your default repo list provided that you haven’t opted to manually remove it. Simply hit the Search tab in Cydia, type in TetherMe, and after a reboot, you’ll be good to go!

BetrFoldr enhances iOS 7 folders; lets you create Nested Folders, enable Pinch to close gesture and remove frosted background

iOS 7 brought a few enhancements to folders such as the ability to add unlimited number of apps etc. along with the redesigned user interface, but a new jailbreak tweak called BetrFoldr, as the name suggests aims to make iOS 7 folders even better.

The jailbreak tweak gives you three options to enhance iOS folders:

• It allows you to close the folder using the pinch to close gesture.

• Lets you remove the frosted background from the folders, which is quite cool as the transparent background for the folders looks much nicer in my opinion.

• It let you to create folders within folders when you enable Nested Folders toggle in the Settings (Settings > BetrFoldr), so you don’t have to use the workaround to create nested folders.

Virtual Home: First Touch ID Jailbreak Tweak now available on Cydia

Worried about the wear and tear of your iPhone 5s’ Home button? Virtual Home, the first jailbreak tweak that makes use of Touch ID should address that concern.

The jailbreak tweak makes use of the Touch ID fingerprint sensor as the Home button.

So after installing the jailbreak tweak, placing your finger on the Home button/Touch ID when you’re on the Home screen will open the app switcher, so you don’t have to double click on the Home button to access it.

Similarly, if you’re using an app, then a tap on the Home button will take you to the Home screen, so you don’t have to click the Home button.

If your iPhone is locked, the tweak saves you the trouble of tapping on the Home or Sleep/Wake button to wake it up, and directly takes you to the Home screen.

Other Home button/Touch ID related features such as accessing Siri and using Touch ID to make purchases in the App Store and iTunes Store. Though you need to press and hold on the Home button pretty fast to prevent the tweak from considering it as a Home button click.

You don’t need to use the finger registered for Touch ID for this to work, the functionality works with any finger (except the one to unlock the device).

Virtual Home developed by moeseth is available for free on Cydia. It’s a pretty cool jailbreak tweak, as I find tapping on the Home or Sleep/Wake button and then using Touch ID to unlock the device is quite annoying. The initial version of the tweak is quite glitchy, as it just stops working sometimes for no reason, and at times Touch ID doesn’t work to unlock the device, thus forcing you to enter the passcode.

We’ll update the post with a video walkthrough of the jailbreak tweak in action shortly. If you’re an iPhone 5s user, then I would love to know what you think of the tweak in the comments below.

Snapchat Database Compromised, Over 4.6 Million Account Details Leaked

It’s never great to start off the beginning of a new year shrouded in controversy and having to deal with a public relations nightmare, but that’s exactly the position which Snapchat finds itself in. The company behind the photo messaging app has confirmed that the app’s user database has indeed been comprised. The news itself is quite daunting, but the situation is further compounded by the fact that the details of more than 4.6 million accounts have been posted online by those who compromised the company’s infrastructure.

This isn’t the first time that a security related concern has hovered over Snapchat. A security company recently made it known that they have detected a vulnerability in the Snapchat service that allowed the phone numbers of registered users to be exposed based on their username. In response to those claims, Snapchat tried their best to deflect the situation by claiming that the potential for obtaining personal data seemed “impractical”, but also implemented additional security to ensure that something like that could never happen going forward.

The individuals behind this recent data breach have actually paid Snapchat a back handed compliment in the process. It seems that the company has indeed added additional security measures to combat the previously noted issues and have fixed the loophole that was found. However, those measures were clearly not enough to stop the underlying database from being compromised, resulting in 4.6 million account details being posted online. The website that hosted and made the details public has subsequently disappeared, but the damage has already been done.

The group behind the attack – who is currently choosing to remain anonymous – is claiming that they took the opportunity to release these details with the intention of bringing awareness to the loopholes and vulnerabilities that continue to exist in the seed funded app. Although they are currently anonymous, the group behind the data reveal did leave a message on their website that:

The company was too reluctant at patching the exploit until they knew it was too late and companies that we trust with our information should be more careful when dealing with it.

Snapchat may have been one of 2013′s hottest apps, but it seems that 2014 may prove a little more challenging.

(via: ZDNet)