3 ms·

Is it possible to update a phone without the user accepting the change (with the phone locked)? Do you want such a tool (the one the removes the security of up

• mikeash 11y ago
  Apparently it is possible to update older phones like this. On newer ones, the OS in general is not an issue, since the security bits are handled by the secure enclave. I'm not sure what the software update policy is (it's only briefly mentioned in Apple's iOS security paper) but I'd wager that it's impossible to push an update to the secure enclave software without either unlocking it or erasing the crypto keys. I don't understand what you're getting at with the "tool" question. Nobody's talking about building something that lets anyone with physical access replace the OS. The phone's secure boot system will still require updates to be signed by Apple. Apple can replace the OS with physical access. On older hardware, it seems they can do this without wiping the data. Do I want Apple to be able to do this? It doesn't matter what I want, the fact is that they can. Since they can, and since the FBI has a court order, I don't see what's wrong with requiring them to do so. If you don't want them doing this to your phone, buy a newer one with the more secure hardware.