PS3 Cracked by 2007 iPhone Hacker

George Hotz, the US youth who cracked the iPhone in 2007, has hacked Sony’s Playstation 3, according to BBC. The hack could potentially allow users to run pirated games, Playstation 2 titles, or homemade software.

This is the first time the three-year-old Playstation 3 has been cracked; until now, it was the only un-hacked console on the market.

“I can now do whatever I want with the system,” Hotz said. “It’s like I’ve got an awesome new power—I’m just not sure how to wield it.”

While Hotz isn’t sure what he’s going to do with his newly hacked PS3, he has given some indication of what he won’t be doing. Hotz’s blog, which serves more as a journal for his experience with the system than a guide to cracking it (“I don’t think … glitching the memory bus like a savage with a screwdriver is going to work. Tomorrow, I’ll try a real attack”), clearly states that he does not condone piracy in any way, shape, or form. “Information on this blog is for research purposes only,” he said.

The hack took Hotz only five weeks. He began last summer with a three-week study of the software; after taking some time away from the project, Hotz spent another two weeks cracking the console. He described it as “a very secure system.”

Hotz said that his hack has been “5 percent hardware and 95 percent software.” He has yet to complete a full hack of the system–the protected memory remains protected, for instance–but he will continue to post his exploits on his blog, in a similar fashion to his iPhone posts from 2007.

Sony told BBC that they are “investigating the report,” and that they will “clarify the situation once [they] have more information.” While it’s impossible to predict how the company is taking the news, it’s safe to assume they aren’t thrilled.

Microsoft disconnected thousands of gamers last year for using hacked or modified Xbox 360 consoles; in addition to piracy issues, gaming firms are worried about hackers cheating in internet matches, or otherwise ruining other users’ online experience.

But that conversation is far and away from Mr. Hotz, who doesn’t use the Playstation 3 as a gaming system. “To tell you the truth, I’ve never really played a PS3,” he said. “I have one game, but I’ve never really played it.”