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Comment by dguido | Hacker News Reader

For fun things you can do with a good working jailbreak, check out this integrity validator that checks if your phone is free of malware by exploiting it: https://github.com/trailofbits/ios-integrity-validator

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Amnesty International released Mobile Verification Toolkit to check your phone for malware, by checking encrypted backups on your computer. https://github.com/mvt-project/mvt

TrailOfBits still publishes the iVerify App, which doesn't go so far as actually exploiting your phone, but is still a useful app to have installed. It will send you a notification when there is an iOS update available, and you can configure it to remind you to hard reboot your device on some periodic schedule. I have it installed and appreciate the reminders to reboot.

Most of this is built-in to iOS, and there's no need to "hard reboot your device on some periodic schedule."

Edit: it appears that all of the application's functions are easily done by setting reminders and simple automation using built-in iOS apps. This is crapware and I don't know why OP is pushing it as so necessary.

Periodically rebooting your device is good practice [0], and is even recommended by the NSA [1], in case you're infected with malware that was able to achieve arbitrary code execution but not able to establish persistence (which often requires a separate exploit from whichever exploit achieved the initial infection).

The iVerify app also has other features, eg a checklist of iOS features that you should disable for your security (turning off bluetooth, airdrop, etc.) which the OS does not remind you of, because it's busy encouraging you to enable them.

[0] https://security.stackexchange.com/a/270906/76104

[1] https://media.defense.gov/2021/Sep/16/2002855921/-1/-1/0/MOB...

Everything you described - periodic reminders and checklists - can still be done with the stock applications.

You can even automate turning off bluetooth and airdrop yourself, again, using the built-in automation functions.

So again: what does this 'security' app you're pushing as so necessary, do that cannot be done with the OS's built-in apps?

Also: can the peanut gallery nonsense about iOS being "busy encouraging you to enable" things. Bluetooth is only re-enabled if you disable it from the quick panel, and the OS tells you it will re-enable it. It will not re-enable it if disabled from the settings app. Airdrop does not re-enable itself, ever...

Everything a word processor does - document layout, formatting, spell checking, copy and paste - could be done with pens, paper, a dictionary, and some glue. So why do people pay money for Microsoft Word?

> what does this 'security' app you're pushing as so necessary

I called it a "useful app," while responding to a comment that linked to the GitHub repo that originally spawned the app. I never said it's "so necessary."

It's a free app from a reputable security company that provides reminders and checklists that I find helpful. Nobody is forcing you to install it (or to follow best practices like rebooting your device).

Hey Siri re-enabled itself on my iPhone 12 Pro Max after I installed the iOS 17.0 update. It's one of the first things I turn off when I get a new phone and I would not have knowingly turned it back on.

Could it have been an installer fluke? Sure. But it's concerning enough.

Apple have a habit of turning features on after a new OS installation, both on iOS and macOS.

>So again: what does this 'security' app you're pushing as so necessary, do that cannot be done with the OS's built-in apps?

They didn't say security app.

They simply mentioned it as related to the comment they replied to, they aren't "pushing as so necessary". They didn't even say the word "necessary", simply explained the app and that they like it.

I don't understand the hostility.

I’m not sure if you realize that the person you replied to is the founder of TrailofBits :)

I didn't, haha :) classic HN

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