If Apple's sat back and let the iPhone hacking community do its thing in peace (well, relative peace)
so far, this little gem just might be what the doctor ordered to stir up the crap. Crackulous -- available now in beta form through Cydia -- claims to be able to strip the protection off most apps downloaded from the App Store, meaning that just a single user needs to take the plunge and buy a target app once to get it busted and into free circulation. You need a jailbroken iPhone to get Crackulous loaded, naturally -- you'll see Apple make a Windows Mobile-powered device before you'll see Crackulous in the App Store -- but seeing how PwnageTool is dead simple to use, this puts most users just a couple graphical tools away from foolproof piracy and the golden opportunity to take a few hard-earned bucks out of a programmer's pocket.
[Via
Funky Space Monkey]
posted Feb 2nd 2009 1:55AM
Woah. That's like taking it to a whole 'nuther level.
OH NO!!! This is indeed totally going to take it to another level. most of the apps are only a buck or 2, but now apple is going to have to step it up and try to prevent jailbreaking. I couln't live without jailbreaking. I really think apple didn't mind the jailbreaking. Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak even jailbroke Kathy Griffin's iphone on her show. He even yelled at her for not doing it sooner. But now that money is involved, they have a BIG reason to try and stop it. I think everyone should email saurik and ask him to keep it out of Cydia.
Saurik( Author of Cydia ) cannot do anything especially to keep Crackulous out of it. Cydia has an open framework for adding any custom resource URL into it (Which in this case can be of crackulous's).
Hopefully Apple will not lockout the MobileInstallation Patch further.
@SeijinZero This hasn't really changed things. Installous has been around for ages giving you the ability to install cracked apps to your iPhone almost as easily as using the app store. Crackulous just makers cracking apps easy for anyone to do - the apps are already out there cracked by more experienced crackers. If anything was going to make Apple take more notice and stamp out jailbreaking it would have been Installous.
Normally, I am NO fan of DRM. However, in this case I really don’t mind. This is simply protecting the programmers and their work and really isn’t doing anyone any harm with how it works in the iPhone setup. I would never buy and iPhone simply because of how locked out and restrictive it is (yes, I know about jailbroken goodness), but they’ve got a good product. This is honestly something of a direct attack on apple and the people who legitimately submitted programs. I hope that the hacker community distances itself from this program.
I think this program is not going to hold water, Why? cause most of these Apps aren't to stable at launch and need constant updating, how the heck are you going to get updates for apps that you haven't brought if the system checks with apple everytime a update is available to make sure you have paid for the App, lol. i guess it's back to the drawing boards for these guys lol.
This is indeed bad news. I'm jail broken but still pay for apps. Lets not give apple more reason to start a war.
@ Snitch
all they have to do is re-crack the updated app, then reinstall it.
As a former iPhone developer, seeing stuff like this makes me glad we stopped making games for it. Until this crud stops there's no way we're going back.
Thanks for destroying the platform, guys.
You can just download apps for free at www.iphonehacks.weebly.com
@jason
since when has piracy ruined a platform? There are MILLIONS of pirated Microsoft Office being used, same with windows. MOST people will choose to buy it from the appstore, not really choose but they have too since they dont know how to do anything else. I agree that you should pay for an app if its good and you deem it worthy, i just dont see how piracy alone can ruin the iphone platform.
Why does Engadget cover these stories that are obviously illegal?
I can't say anyone relies on the app store for income, people should know better than that, but it could hurt when you use the extra cash from an app you made isn't there because someone thought it would be a good idea to "jailbreak" your code into a free app. i'd hate to be a developer right now...
This could stifle development significantly. There are only a few expensive apps but the cheaper apps are by people trying to stay afloat in a crappy economy. This app is not a good thing but it's here so we have to deal with it.
I make my living from the App Store and am raising a family and work 6 to 7 days a week 10 to 14 hours a day. Anyone who can't afford a few bucks for a quality app (not all are worth even the time to download, but some are worth 10 times what the developer is forced to sell them for), but has enough money to pay Apple $200 and AT&T about $1000 or more a year, and enough time to pirate apps, doesn't deserve to have an iPhone. Support the platform, or the platform won't support you.
My hats off to @iPhoneDev. It is dedication like yours that makes the iPhone platform so great. Give us a list of your apps and I will buy some today just to show my support.
well iPhoneDev, apps have been hacked on windows/mac for ages, and this just makes it easier on the iphone too.
I am not saying it's a good thing this got released, it isn't. But it's not going to destroy your world. I am getting into iPhone development as we speak and this doesn't change anything.
@ iPhoneDev
"Anyone who can't afford a few bucks for a quality app ... but has enough money to pay Apple $200 and AT&T about $1000 or more a year, and enough time to pirate apps, doesn't deserve to have an iPhone."
I have enough money to pay Volkswagen $300 a month and my insurance company about $1500 a year and yet, I still burn my own CD's with downloaded mp3's. Does this mean I don't deserve to listen to music while I drive a car?
You think every iPhone you're developing for has songs purchased through the iTunes store?
@tyler: You're missing the point. when you pirate a song, you're stealing from a multibillion dollar industry full of scumbags. When you pirate an App Store App, the majority of the time you're going to be stealing from a one-person or few-person shop which actually suffers from the loss of profit. I'm not claiming pirating songs is right or wrong -- personally I buy my music to force me to slow down and appreciate it more -- but it certainly doesn't hurt Sony BMG or Universal the way stealing one of iPhoneDev's apps might hurt him/her.
oh no you did'int *snap*
[insert moronic remark here]
sure!
"A lot of hard work and development went in to making this brilliant application. It would be unfair if it was given for free."
quoted directly from the website www.crackulous.net
@LazarPandar I would like to point out that www.crackulous.net is not an official site. Some guy set it up to try to put a stop to crackulous. This guy known as Mr. Haklab (www.haklab.com) is quite infamous for snitching. I'm not saying he's a bad person, but that's not a real site at all. The app is completely free. But seriously, go to Haklab's site and he admits it.
I smell lawsuit.
I guess this if this doesn't convince users to jailbreak, nothing will.
Well why would anyone install any App that they can't update later on? most of the apps are buggy as hell when launch but they later on get better and better
I could be wrong, I don't have an iPhone and I wouldn't do that anyway, but I think it was already possible to crack the applications, wasn't it? I could've sworn I've seen some floating around torrents and things before.
Right, but with this little gem, even the average 13-year-old iPhone retard can crack applications.
Hooray for script kiddies -__-
Don't get me wrong, I have a jailbroken iPhone, and love all that it has to offer... But this just makes me cringe as I imagine the hoards of script kiddie iPhone users going: LOOOK I CAN HAS CRACK PULL MY FINGER APP LOLZ.
Where??? I can't find any ^_^ hehehe
i wonder if it would be like this on android too once people start paying for apps. I feel sorry for the developers, because some DO rely on this for income.
That's exactly right. Some software "pirates" try to justify themselves by telling people that they're not stealing from the little guy, only the big corporations who charge too much anyway.
Well now pirates are going after the little guy....
I think the hacking community will have more respect for Android because of the fact that it is open source and so hacker friendly. Apple on the other hand has been about as lock down as you can get. Now, I in NO WAY think that justifies or this program. It is flat out wrong because there is almost no purpose for it other than piracy (unlike other DRM removal software). I’m still holding out hope for the Android revolution
there are enough free apps out there that haven't bothered to jailbreak my iphone yet. but if i did, all those apps are open source, right? pirating from megacorps can be be in the gray area IMO, but taking from small developers is just plain wrong. either pay or stick to the free apps.
I'm all for opening up the platform, free development, diversity of apps, etc etc. In fact, I love what the dev team does.
However, this tool (unlike, say, BitTorrent) has only one use: to steal. Granted, I would like to see what that $999 app does, but I'm still not so happy about this app.
Besides pirating this could also be developed to bring down AppStore. Appstore is being rendered useless by this tool and developers will have to find their own solutions to protect their product instead to rely on Apple to protect them. Though pirating isn´t always healthy I do see the benefit of this tool as this would hopefully result in Apple letting their fingers of the appstore so developers can develop what they want in order to protect their software and also deliver what the costumer wants instead of Apple.
@JZ
You OBVIOUSLY are getting something wrong.
This is an application to crack APP STORE APPLICATIONS.
WHY IN THE WORLD WOULD THIS BE MADE TO "BRING DOWN APPSTORE"??????????
this is pretty funny. the app cracks apps and the guy is complaining on twitter that it's actually been pirated and he was planning on selling it. what a loser http://twitter.com/Crackulous
L M A O
That's not the crackulous guys. It's idiots trying to get money out of it, just like those who were selling pwnage tool.
Ah! The Irony.
From his twitter feed: @_danilo Buy legal version of Crackulous from http://www.crackulous.net free version is illegal it steals sensitive data like passwords.
Riiiiggghhhht!!!
making the full application available for half an hour would go a long ways.
how is this different than installous??
Installous, Installs the .ipa files (Apps)
Crackulous, Cracks apps you have purchased from the App Store so you can upload them and be a part of the cracking community.
Both of them serve a single purpose, Piracy.
Not cool engadget.
1. This is essentially publicly approving software piracy.
2. Making this such a public notice means that the people who do enjoy this product have less time with it due to the whining apple will get from the developers.
think of the poor script kiddies who use this to show how sweet of hackers they are!
Mr. Dole, I tend to agree w/ your opinion that this post seems to promote piracy. Perhaps the justification is that engadget isn't really telling us to pirate - they're just reporting the news of the release of a new app that allows for that to happen.
In any case, I won't be downloading this app. I have an iPhone 3G. It's jailbroken and unlocked. But I support paying for software. All my apps, whether from the App Store or from Cydia (pdanet) are legal and paid for. Stealing is bad, folks!
agreeing 100%.
but in good news. the application is epic fail. crashes every time you open it.
I think it's obvious from the last sentence of the article that they're not approving of it.
Really? I guess when CNN reports on a murder then approve the actions of the murderer?
That will be the developers crying into their bowls of soup whilst listening to harddrives full of pirates music.
This is sad. I don't want the App Store to die.
Apple meet the Pirate Bay. We've been waiting!
Aha! AHHAAHAHHAHA! Internet people complaining about piracy? Now I have seen it all!
Rather you're downloading your favorite song, an iPhone app, or Microsoft Windows... you're stealing. You're all thieves, every single one of you. Now sit down, shut up, and start using your iPhone to the best of it's ability. (Something you couldn't afford to do until this app was released.)
Um - why could I not use my iphone to the best of its ability before this? This doesn't add functionality, it just gives me something I should pay for, for free.
And not everyone on the internet is a pirate. Loser.
Very amused that the author of this software is crying like a baby (and has lost his job because of this project) after getting a taste of his own medicine! Instant karma.
...Why post this sort of thing?
I cant find it on cydia, which repositories is it on?
One word: Disgusting.
I'm sorry, the author(s) of this tool should be ashamed of themselves, although perhaps not as much as those who use it to obtain free software that someone invested their time in.
People who complain about this, while I see where you are coming from, you are forgetting something. Atleast ONE time in your life, you downloaded a song, video, movie, or app from limewire or a torrent. That one "object" cost someone money. Lots of it. Now, the only reason people complain here is simple. They just bought an app, its unjust that someone can get it for free. But didn't you do the same thing? And also with this comes the other point that just because it says it can crack apps and give them to free, lets face it. People will pirate, but other people will steal code. Change it, and add some stuff.
And with this, your brains will turn to mush because you can't turn off your ipod, TV, and laptop... And then we will scoop them out of the melon bowler and gobble them right up! Ops I think I am drooling a little... Because we are aliens... And that's how we roll.
change it, and add stuff, so they can pirate the new version? give me a break. just because you pirate stuff doesn't mean the whole world does.
and even if the whole world did, that would not make it any more right.
seriously, it's a couple bucks. programmers can't do concerts or sell tshirts, and there's no case art even to attract die-hard fans. stealing an iphone app leaves the programmer absolutely no way to make money. a musician will lose out if you steal music, but they might still survive on other income sources and keep making music. a programmer who can't make money selling an app will quit making apps, and then you'll be stuck with crap apps.
I could see this being a big deal for more expensive apps... but if the app is only $0.99 is it really worth the hassle?
Although this could cost Popcap a good amount of $$$
I like the idea of being able to try apps before shelling out cash.
No one expects people to buy cars without taking them for a spin first, why is software any different? With that being said, if it's a good program and I use it, I'll pay.
because of the price difference?
similarly you take the car for a spin, you don't bring it home and use it as much as you want and then when you feel generous send a X0000$ check to the dealer (X vary based on the car you want of course).
This is not about just taking a car or software for a spin.
By the way I am a developer and all for a way to let people try my app for a day or two before buying but definitely against this
I didn't know that His Holiness the Flying Spaghetti Monster provided cell phone service. Man, I'm such a dope! Of course He can. He can do all things. Forgive me, FSM.
I really wouldn't be surprised if Saurik decided to remove this from Cydia.
This kind of blatant piracy really isn't the kind of crap that Saurik set out to do with Cydia.
So, I actually can't "remove it" from Cydia as it isn't /in/ Cydia. Cydia is a web browser. You can type a URL into it and get it to install stuff for you from that URL. None of the URLs that come with it or that I recommend people use would do something like this. I obviously do not condone it in the slightest. But again, I can't do anything about it. Engadget has written /yet another/ poorly worded, poorly researched article, but then again that's no surprise: people really should stop reading it.
@Chris Ziegler: The way you're mentioning Cydia and Pwnage Tool makes it seem like that's their main purpose. There's much more to it than cracked apps. My iPhone would be useless without applications that run in the background, and Winterboard for customizing the GUI and icons. I'll blame your and this article if jailbreaking and Cydia ends!
It's funny what you can read in the forums where the tool has been released.
Everybody is like:
„Yeah! Great for the community. Finaly! Freedom! Change”
What's wrong with you people?
How can you think it's right to fuck people over and take, what they worked hard for, away from them for free?
Some guy above said: Who relies on the App Store as income is stupid. OMG.
Seriously: I'm think the Jailbreaking is an ok thing. If some nerds need to spend their time customizing their iPhone, so be it.
But this is not good for the community. In fact you are the filth of the community.
No matter what you say: keeping an App and not paing for it is just ass.
But now, although the cracking was already there, through loading cracked apps through ssh, I think this whole matter has shown it's true face - not the developers, but the users:
All it ever was about is installing cracked apps. Ever.
Not Background Apps, not SDK restrictions. It was cracking Games, first and foremost.
That's what all the users waited and rooted for.
And cracking apps has reached a new low, because people don't even spend 5 $ for a really nicely made game - like Critter Crunch - anymore. But I think they still pay for their Starbucks Caramel Fatochino Grande ... or whatever.
No, they find it somehow justifiable to take it for free and justifiy it with a mixture of stupid keywords: Open Source, Freedom, Change.
Son of Bi***.
Bad day for the community.
"How can you think it's right to fuck people over and take, what they worked hard for, away from them for free?"
this is how the world works. no one cares about others , everyone wants what they can get for free, if its simple to do who cares about the guy loosing money. most people pirate music. this is how the world is in general. no-one gives a toss about some guy loosing money because it simply doesn't matter to them. this is where we have come to as humans. also software can always be cracked, if it can be done it will, morals of people are far lower than they used to be.
What about the kill list we were all so fussed about a few months ago? Seems like it might become a lot more useful for Apple, that is if the can keep up with the developers.
Correct if I'm wrong, but doesn't similar exist in one way/shape/form for any platform/OS?
We have PalmPass and SerialBox and dozens more.. this is different how?
I don't agree with it, but I don't think in the long run it will amount to a hill of beans.
Since the 3G iPhone, most iPhone users are your average mom (or that bum down the road) who would never even jailbreak the iPhone in the first place, an application like this will never "bring down" the app store. But even if just 10% of people end up having this app (and i doubt it would ever be more than 10%) it is still simply wrong.
This is stealing from the little guy, not the big corporations.
I agree in general.
But you do understand that at the "big corporations" (still these keywords from a 100 years ago omg) thousands OF "LITTLE PEOPLE" work and get payed.
So if you think it's ok to screw EA f.e. over, because they are "a big corporation", you fuck the people over that work for them and get LAIDED OFF because of declining revenue.
Argh.
Very true, I know alot of iphone users that dont even know how to download any apps from the app store, the majority will never even come close to jailbreaking unless one of their technilly inclined friends (like me) charge for the service..... Im a little guy too that needs to get paid for my work. This app's not gonna change anything except maybe make apple more vigilant.
Just filled out PayPal's "spoofing" alert web form (the closest thing they have to reporting abuse by PayPal users) with the following. You might want to do something similar... Login to PayPal and visit https://www.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_external-webform&f=pps_spf
This is not spoofing per se, but a hacker has started a service that charges $10 to $20 to hack Apple iPhone software. Users must pay via PayPal.
There will be a class action lawsuit on behalf of the developers of over 17,000 iPhone AppStore apps. Apple may join as well.
PayPal will be named as one of the responsible parties.
It is NOT in PayPal's interest to be part of this venture. I suggest you withhold all funds from this illegal venture and set them aside immediately for the legal proceedings, and not allow PayPal to be used for commercial theft of intellectual property.
Details at:
http://www.engadget.com/2009/02/02/crackulous-released-promises-to-bust-iphone-app-protection-sche/
http://www.crackulous.net/
http://twitter.com/Crackulous
I joined in.
Hope this double, triple asshole get's at leas his PayPal account pulled.
This changes everything.
Wow Engadget. You can ALREADY get the entire Library of apps for free. Check out www.appolus.us
Sorry wrong URL its http://appulo.us/appdb/
Jesus fucking christ.
What a fucking shame. My phone is jailbroken for 3 reasons:
1. pdanet
2. clippy (system wide copy and paste)
3. ability to run apps in background
It's terrible to think that software like this could ruin the good thing that cydia is. As said by others, most apps are less than $5 ... people should just pay for them.
This is bad news. I think the App Store produces content that is reasonably priced. Standard boxed games have come a long way in price terms - more reasonable for what you get. But that took a long time and a massive amount of piracy. The App Store is helping people to become self employed developers based on good quality applications. Take a look at the game Edge on the App Store. A very quirky and smarty game from a developer who have basically done nothing. They have the tools for a good platform and have made a creative game - why shouldn't they get the financial rewards they deserve? Ripping off people like that is not fair and it will only damage the future of application and games on the iPhone/iPod Touch platform. Less desire for Apple to support or develop the product and what are we left with?? Not alot. Everyone has to make money to survive, develop profit so this new tool is not a fucking welcome sight.
Very good comment.
But isn't this a way of removing the DRM from apps?
DRM is bad, right?
Or is it a case of "one rule for artists, another rule for programmers"?
"DRM is bad, right?"
Someone already made this point I think, but in this case DRM isn't bad. You are never going to want to take your iPhone application and play it on another device. iPhone Apps are locked to iPhones from the get-go, so DRM doesn't limit you from doing anything besides outright stealing. DRM for music provides a lot more limitations than DRM for iPhone Apps.
Great way to put me out of business!
WOW, What a Bunch of PANSIES in here!!
Bad news for the Jailbreak community: until now Apple didn't have enough of a reason to pro-actively prevent Jailbreaking, now they do.
Most iPhone app graphics were probably designed with a cracked version of Photoshop, so I guess it's only fair.
It's a pirate's version of "Try before you buy".
Been doing this for a while now. No need for a graphical interface.... just copy the mobileframwork file, and download the cracked apps from bittorrent. Of course this puts it in the spotlight now...... thanks for blowing the whistle.
Yeah, this wasn't a good idea.
I'm no apple fan, but the app store allows developers who normally couldn't get their apps into the mainstream without a lot of overhead, a chance to shine. The apps are normally pretty cheap. Only an a** would crack a $.99 program.
Lets hope all jail breaking doesn't suffer for this garbage. Go Cydia.
I love all the fanboys getting all uppity. It's very entertaining.
This is Apple's own fault and if you didn't see it coming, I'm sorry you're so blind.
Becoming a dictator of your app store will generate a community of people who have the hardware but are blocked by the software to do the things they want to do.
If Apple would have never locked out tethering, copy/paste, and pretty much all the other important features found in a smartphone, the jailbreaking community would only be full of people that picked up the phone second hand. People looking to do it on the cheap, which would be a much smaller community, and thus lessening the impact of this application.
People also want to throw their insults and anger at the jailbreaking community, when it's their magical fruit company that is at fault.
Your an idiot. This has nothing to do with tethering or copy/paste. This is about STEALING software that costs in most cases at most 9.99$. Your all fine and good with it now, but dont forget the next step is the cracking of all the stuff they sell on cydia. How long till all those indy devs you love so much are removing all their paid cydia apps cause YOU are stealing them you fuck?
@Dillinger
I seriously hope you're not talking to me. What Indy devs I love so much? What the fuck are you talking about? Me stealing? What the fuck am I stealing, I don't own an iPhone, seriously what the fuck are you talking about?
Re-read my fucking post and then comment again you fuckwad.
The jailbreaking community exists manly for tethering and copy/paste, there is no denying this. There's also a bunch of people that hate Apple for the lockdown of the applications that Apple has applied. If you eliminated these two large groups, you lessen the size of the community as a whole, and in turn lessen the impact of the release of a crackulous application.
If Apple didn't lock out tethering, copy/paste, and restrictive application rules then this would be a non story.
WTF are you taking about? Crackulous has nothing to do with fucking tethering/copy paste as i said. This application is ONLY for stealing other peoples work. The point you are making has nothing to do with crackulous. Yes the jailbreaking community is awesome for what it does, but this helps noone. Crackulous wont help you download a tethering app or a copy and paste app, what it will do is allow you to CRACK STEAL and DISTRIBUTE applications that are available on the regular app store, which there are no tethering or system wide copy paste apps as you said.
How can you be a dictator of a store of which YOU created both the venue and the tools to submit? Its not called dictatorship its called fucking ownership.
I may have come on a little strong, and i apologize, but like i said this has nothing to do with the reason most people jailbreak their phones. Of course now it will. And i apologize for assuming you were an iphone jailbreaker who was promoting this thievery.
@Dillinger
I think you really need to calm down here and actually read what my initial post says. I know full well what Craclulous does, I have reading comprehension above a kindergarten level and I read the story and completely understand the implications.
If Apple was never as restrictive as it was, this never would have happened.
That sums up my two posts in one nice easy to swallow sentence. That's all I have to say because you do not appear intelligent enough to comprehend what I was saying in my original comment.
"If Apple was never as restrictive as it was, this never would have happened."
Wow awesome reasoning. If cars didn't have locks they would never get broken into, If mp3's didn't have DRM you wouldn't steal them, If banks didn't have vaults and just left their money lying around you wouldn't take it cause its not restrictive. If stupid stores didn't have security systems no-one would shoplift cause its "Open Source bro"
Yes i am the stupid one. You may have reading comprehension but you do not have reasoning comprehension, and since you have moved on to stupid insults im done here. Good luck out there. Whatever helps you sleep at night buddy.
@Dillinger
Forgive me if I'm overlooking something.
"Your an idiot."
It would appear that you were the first to throw insults around.
Again, there is nothing more I can do for you to "get" what I am saying, that is why I'm giving up. I am tired of explaining it to you. Your last post makes absolutely no sense to me, talking about banks and open source shop lifting or some shit.
@ Dubb
Good job making yourself look like a total idiot and fucktard at the same time, lol.
@Dubb
Awesome!
You really went out of your way to not look like an idiot, but to top it by looking like a super idiot!
No hard feelings. Haha.
I think what he was saying that because Apple didn't include the features, that was what drove people to jailbreaking, which means they're more exposed to this
It's probably stretching quite a bit