Graykey is a phone unlocking and forensic tool used by law enforcement that can retrieve data from even modern iPhones running iOS 18. Made by the highly secretive company Grayshift and recently acquired by Magnet Forensics, this is the first time a leak has revealed which iPhone models can be unlocked running Apple’s latest iOS 18 updates.
BGR always recommends its readers update to the latest iOS versions. Apple adds new features and fixes several vulnerabilities in the system. According to documents seen by 404 Media, Graykey can partially unlock most iOS 18 devices, while iPhone 11 models can have their data completely stolen.
At this moment, it seems this tool can unlock iPhones running iOS 18 (released on September 16) and iOS 18.0.1 (released on October 3). However, the forensic company has not cracked beta versions of iOS 18.1, its official version, and the upcoming iOS 18.2.
Forbes notes that a “partial extraction” can only draw out unencrypted files and some metadata, including file sizes and folder structures, which means the Graykey hack tool can’t obtain all data from modern iPhones.
Fortunately, it seems most people are protected against this hack tool. In an interview with CNBC last month, Apple CEO Tim Cook said iOS 18.1 was being adopted “twice the rate” they had with iOS 17.1. The interest for this subsequent operating system update is due to iOS 18.1 unlocking Apple Intelligence features for iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models.
Thankfully, the best solution to keep modern iPhones out of risk is updating them constantly, as these hacking tools take a while to find new breaches on Apple’s systems. A few months ago, BGR reported that another tool was being used to hack iPhone users. Fortunately, updating the iPhone to the latest iOS release solved most of the issues.
Even with AT&T, Lumen, and Verizon’s recent hack, the iPhone has proven it doesn’t offer backdoors. China has been accused of targeting iPhones of presidential campaign offices. Lastly, we all know about the Pegasus hacking tool, which the FBI has used despite a White House ban.
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