iPhone Unlocking Scams.
When I was investigating the possibility of unlocking my new iPhone I was dismayed to find many scammers offering an easy online unlocking service.
There are a large number of websites that look genuine and have a lot of positive customer feed back offering an easy unlock service for $17 to $25. They all have one thing in common, they supply step by step instructions and a couple of download links where you can down load “their” jailbreak (unlocking software). The thing is the links are for software that is freely open source and available to download for nothing.
To unlock the phone you first have to jail break it using free software called Sn0wbreeze. Once it is jailbroken you have access to a directory of applications called Cydia. Here you will find the utility to unlock your phone to any carrier.
I investigated at least ten different websites offering to unlock your iPhone immediately all charging you for the service and without exception the download links and instructions used the free software I mentioned above.
The disadvantage with jailbreaking your phone to unlock it is you have to repeat the process every time Apple releases an update. This is because when the phone was first registered the Apple servers have a record of the service provider and ensure the correct system is downloaded each time the phone is updated.
The best way to unlock the iphone is at the end of the contract, contact the carrier and request the phone is unlocked. The carrier is obliged to unlock the phone for you and update the information on the Apple servers.
The advantage is you can keep the phone updated with the latest system with no fear of it being re-locked.
The disadvantage is depending on the type of contract you have with the particular carrier you may have to pay an administration fee. It is also not instant as the update on the Apple servers can take up to fourteen days to be activated.
Which ever way you decide to unlock your phone don’t be tempted to pay for it using the many ‘instant ‘ services listed on Google. Do it for free using the same system the scammers are charging you for or do it officially through you existing carrier.
If you do get tempted and pay for your phone to be unlocked, check to see if the process involves down loading a free app from Cydia. If they instruct you to do it that way you have been scammed and paid for something which is free!
