Also, even if JailbreakMe was malicious (or somebody used the same code or exploits in a malicious way), it could not "spread itself": it was a browser exploit (although it would be possible to run without the user knowing).
It could certainly spread. Maybe it could SMS a link to a malicious download to your most frequently contacted contacts? Being able to run arbitrary code on a device that knows how to contact all your friends certainly introduces some vectors for attack.
See the first of the 10 Immutable Laws of Security: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc722487.aspx
Plus, if he jailbreaks devices because he believes people should be free to do with their hardware as they please why on earth would he effectively join the dark side?
That's why I hedged with "temporarily". If he's the best that's working on jailbreaking now, just taking him off that project would already help. And asking him to work to secure phones would be a great help, too - he could spot potential vulnerabilities before they're shipped.
This won't make the iPhone into a space-shuttle, but it will make jailbreaking harder, perhaps significantly so.
> Plus, if he jailbreaks devices because he believes people should be free to do with their hardware as they please why on earth would he effectively join the dark side?
They'll drive a dump-truck full of money up to his house. Or maybe there's something else he values more than the belief in free hardware.
Money.
> "How would comex rid Apple's entire development process of error?"
It wouldn't - but finding exploits and security holes isn't a matter of course. There aren't altogether that many people who have the talents for it, much less the ability to package it into a coherent tool that normal joes can actually download and use.
I have a feeling that there are few enough people who fit this description that Apple can effectively buy them all out.
It probably wouldn't be an easy decision for Comex either... I recall that hacker that turned down Sony's offer. What could happen to your hacker freedom once you're at your employer's mercy? And if you leave Apple someday, forget about jailbreaking any other Apple device for as long as you live due NDA's and all the legal stuff he would have sign.
He designed none of the interface.
> '... his obvious coding skills ...'
A lot of the time, a person's coding skills are judged by how readable their code is, and how well they utilize SCM. Also, to be an Apple engineer you want extensive experience with Objective-C. https://github.com/comex/star_
Now I don't mean to say comex is a bad programmer at all, the stuff he writes is amazing, I just feel like he wouldn't make a good Apple engineer.
Comex may not fit the profile of an Apple engineer, but I think he'd still do a damn good job as one.