Hacktivation is the process of activating an iPhone without a valid SIM card inserted. This is especially useful for the old iPhones that require a SIM card in order to activate the device.
In Legacy iOS Kit, there are two methods for hacktivation. It is required for the device to be jailbroken and/or restored, depending on the method used. For iPhone 4 devices, it is also required for the device to not have iCloud/Activation lock.
Support
- Legacy iOS Kit can hacktivate iPhones 2G, 3G, 3GS, and 4
- iOS versions 3.1.3 to 6.1.6 are supported.
- 3.1 and 3.1.2 are also supported for Custom IPSW Method only, iPhone 3GS only.
Custom IPSW Method
This is the method that sn0wbreeze uses when hacktivating devices.
This method can be used by going to Restore/Downgrade, selecting your preferred iOS version, and enable both Jailbreak Option and Hacktivate Option.
This method of hacktivation is only available for iPhone 2G, 3G, and 3GS devices.
Note for 3.1.x on iPhone 3GS
By default, this method is unavailable on 3.1.x 3GS as the jailbreak option is disabled due to an issue with ASR when modifying the filesystem. To enable this method and allow the selection of the Jailbreak and Hacktivate options, follow these steps:
- Go to Misc Utilities -> Enable Flags.
- Enable the Jailbreak Flag and select Yes.
- Return to Restore/Downgrade and proceed with the restore.
Note that the restore might not complete successfully due to the ASR issue mentioned above. If you encounter this problem, consider using the Jailbreak Method below instead.
Jailbreak Method
This method requires the device to be jailbroken with OpenSSH installed, or restored with the Jailbreak Option enabled, which automatically installs OpenSSH.
This hacktivation method is available for all supported devices.
- If the device is not yet jailbroken, start by jailbreaking it using the Jailbreak Device option from the main menu.
- Once the jailbreak is complete and the device reboots, go to Useful Utilities -> Hacktivate Device.