Apple's iOS 7 Lightning Connector Authentication Check 'Permanently' Cracked - Mac Rumors:

As noted just after the launch of the first iOS 7 beta earlier this month, the operating system is capable of detecting when unauthorized Lightning cables or accessories are plugged into an iOS 7 device.

I may have a friend who grabbed a cheapie lightning cable from dx.com a while back for a latest-gen iPod, and the insanely inexpensive thing (I was to say it was $5 shipped or less) works great.  Great with syncing, great with an iPod-ready car stereo receiver, just plain great.

I should Google sources back up, but I did wonder how this happened.  I would think there are some easy ways to make an unauthorized cable based on existing batches from Apple, sort of how I understand Blu-Ray works.  There are lots of "client" keys (my terminology; again, I should figure this all out), and each mfg gets a few to put into their machines.  They only get decryption formulas for those keys.  So if their machines are cracked (or, I suppose, folks believe a certain company let slip their key and formula), future Blu-Ray discs can be created to remove that decryption "path".  So yes, you have to sacrifice that manufacturer's devices' forward-compatibility (or give them new firmware), but you at least stop the bleeding for future Blu-Ray printings.

So it'd seem if iOS 7 kills some cords that cheated in similar ways (if the analogy is appropriate at all), they'd kill some of their own.  But I did figure Apple'd eventually kill some cords like my friend's, and you'd be stuck figuratively "watching old Blu-Rays", which here translates to "staying on an older version of iOS 6".

The producer who claims to have figured out the entire system does add...

Chang warns that several other companies have claimed to have achieved similar cracks, but that in iPhone5mod's testing those companies' cables still generate alerts under certain circumstances.

But I still want to see some cords stop working before I completely buy in that this is a practical issue.  (And I wonder if any Blu-Ray players have been killed?  I don't think so.)

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