Siri Protocol Cracked, But Unique iPhone 4S ID Requirement Hampers Distribution
Applidium, the developers who brought the open source video player VLC to the App Store only to have it pulled over licensing issues, have announced that they have reverse engineered the protocol used to allow Siri to communicate with Apple's servers. Citing an example in which they were able to communicate with Siri servers directly from a computer, the developers note that they were able to have the servers recognize and analyze their voice input just as if it had originated from an iPhone 4S.
Today, we managed to crack open Siri’s protocol. As a result, we are able to use Siri’s recognition engine from any device. Yes, that means anyone could now write an Android app that uses the real Siri! Or use Siri on an iPad! And we’re going to share this know-how with you.
Unfortunately for those hoping to make use of Siri in their apps on iOS or other platforms, the protocol is set up to transmit a unique identifier for a given iPhone 4S. The developers at Applidium were able to extract that identifier from one of their devices and use it to authenticate their non-iPhone Siri input, but such code would likely not survive being included in an application packaged for distribution, as Apple's servers would presumably be able to easily identify and blacklist any device identifier generating excessive usage from multiple locations.
The developers do note, however, that the proof of concept demonstration may prove interesting for developers looking to play around with non-iPhone 4S implementations of Siri for their personal use.
Popular Stories
Phishing attacks taking advantage of Apple's password reset feature have become increasingly common, according to a report from KrebsOnSecurity. Multiple Apple users have been targeted in an attack that bombards them with an endless stream of notifications or multi-factor authentication (MFA) messages in an attempt to cause panic so they'll respond favorably to social engineering. An...
At least some Apple software engineers continue to believe that iOS 18 will be the "biggest" update in the iPhone's history, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Below, we recap rumored features and changes for the iPhone. "The iOS 18 update is expected to be the most ambitious overhaul of the iPhone's software in its history, according to people working on the upgrade," wrote Gurman, in a r...
Apple will introduce new iPad Pro and iPad Air models in early May, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman previously suggested the new iPads would come out in March, and then April, but the timeline has been pushed back once again. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Apple is working on updates to both the iPad Pro and iPad Air models. The iPad Pro models will...
Apple today announced that its 35th annual Worldwide Developers Conference is set to take place from Monday, June 10 to Friday, June 14. As with WWDC events since 2020, WWDC 2024 will be an online event that is open to all developers at no cost. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. WWDC 2024 will include online sessions and labs so that developers can learn about new...
Apple may be planning to add support for "custom routes" in Apple Maps in iOS 18, according to code reviewed by MacRumors. Apple Maps does not currently offer a way to input self-selected routes, with Maps users limited to Apple's pre-selected options, but that may change in iOS 18. Apple has pushed an iOS 18 file to its maps backend labeled "CustomRouteCreation." While not much is revealed...
Apple on late Tuesday released revised versions of iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 with an updated build number of 21E237, according to MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris. The updates previously had a build number of 21E236. The revised updates are available for all iPhone and iPad models that are compatible with iOS 17 and iPadOS 17, but they can only be installed via the Finder app on macOS...
With the App Store and app ecosystem undergoing major changes in the European Union, The Wall Street Journal today shared a profile on App Store chief Phil Schiller, who is responsible for the App Store. Though Schiller transitioned from marketing chief to "Apple Fellow" in 2020 to take a step back from Apple and spend more time on personal projects and friends, he is reportedly working...
Top Rated Comments
obviously you have not used siri.
So you used it once in a store. I can tell you for fact Siri beats google voice commands....
Here's a list for you and those of us who neglect to mention them:
-Siri
-8 megapixel camera with vastly improved optics. Quality is absolutely outstanding. I am a pro-photographer, I use Nikon and Canon DSLRs, I shoot films on the RED and I can tell you the iPhone 4S camera is far from mediocre. 1080p video on a camera that does not look like $#!T, AND almost no color noise in well-lit photos. Amazing and worth the upgrade for me.
-A5 Chip, dual core processor. Talk to anyone who games on their iPhone, talk to me who uses the Brushes app and other creative tools. This particular upgrade makes Brushes, Games, and productivity apps run smoothly, and when I'm digital painting on my phone, I don't want the cpu to hiccup.
-improved antennae design. I get 1 more bar everywhere I got less than 5 bars with my iPhone 4. It makes the difference.
-Bluetooth 4.0.
And lets talk about the design a little. Stainless steel. Last time I checked, stainless steel is stronger than cheapo plastics. Glass. Beautiful, reflective, smooth, polished glass. My finger glides across it like a puck on ice. Used the Droid Bionic and Droid charge (Friends). It was like touching sandpaper with a burn wound.
Cheers.