Jailbreaking And Rooting Exposed: Understanding Hidden Mobile Security Risks
ESET, Tuesday, July 29th, 2025
If you decide to jailbreak or root your device, it could make you a target.
For many of us, customization is the key to getting the most out of our devices. But taking that to the extreme by jailbreaking or rooting your device can lead to unintended consequences. It pays to be aware of the security and privacy trade-offs involved in bypassing manufacturer restrictions.
What Does Jailbreaking or Rooting Mean?
Simply put, both jailbreaking and rooting describe almost the same thing - gaining administrator-level access to a device and its operating system (OS). However, there are some technical differences between the two, since, in Apple's case, you have to deliberately bypass existing security layers to 'jailbreak' a device (hence the name), while, for Android, you're modifying the underlying core software architecture - rooting it.