Apple iPhone Passcodes Can Be Cracked Within Hours Using A Sub-$200 Tool: Report

Apple iPhone 5c — A mini tool named "IP Box" can apparently crack the 4-digit passcode of any Apple iPhones. Reuters

The war between Apple and FBI might have come to an end for the time being, thanks to the brilliant folks at the Israeli firm that unlocked the controversial Apple iPhone 5c of San Bernardino shooter. For those uninitiated, Syed Farook, the shooter, along with his wife killed 14 people in California last December.

Many critics have been questioning the FBI as to why they were not able to crack the iPhone in the first place with all the latest technology in hand. Instead, they sought help from Apple to do the needful. So far, there is no answer from the investigation agency. In the meantime, Daily Mail UK apparently stumbled on to a device that unlocks Apple iPhones within hours.

The tiny machine named IP Box has the capability to crack the four-digit passcode used to lock any iPhones. This device will set the buyers back by just £119.99 (about $170) and it can now be purchased from UK’s Fone Fun Shop.

The director of this online shop Mark Strachan apparently told Daily Mail UK that the IP Tool was sourced from Hong Kong. It was built to help iPhone users access their photos, personal data and contacts from a locked device with a forgotten passcode.

Strachan was very candid in saying that the company was very skeptical initially. However, after repeated testing, they understood the power of such a tool. As of now, the IP Box works on iPhones powered by iOS 7 or older.

This device can take anytime between 6 seconds to 17 hours to crack the four-digit iPhone passcode. As it turns out, Daily Mail UK bought the machine and cracked the passcode of an iPhone 5c in 6 hours.

The same site also says a new version of the tool will soon be made available that will be able to crack passcodes on iPhones running the latest iOS 9. The Apple iOS 9 is supposed to be high on security and privacy aspects.

Strachan thinks the IP Box makes use of the same technique used by FBI and the Israeli firm to unlock Syed Farook’s iPhone 5c, sans Apple’s assistance. While FBI is now ready to help law enforcement agencies by unlocking Apple devices when in dire need, Apple is trying to develop a firmware update to end this vulnerability.