It looks like PS5 jailbreak will remain a pipe dream for the modding community for a very, very long time after September 2024’s system software update (currently version 24.06-10.01.00). As Sony continues to combat PS4 jailbreaking, the company quietly changed the way game licenses work on the PS5, ensuring that it remains one step ahead of hackers this time around.
How September 2024’s PS5 update impacts jailbreak possibility
Known modder Lance McDonald pointed out on X that the latest firmware update changed the way PS5’s ‘Restore Licenses’ feature works. Previously, players could download licenses for every single digital game they’ve ever owned with the click of a button. Now, they can only re-download licenses for games they currently have installed.
How does this impact jailbreaking? According to McDonald, if players take their PS5 offline and jailbreak it, they’ll lose access to their digital library. In the past, players could make illegal dumps of their entire PSN library and put it onto a USB stick for sharing, and mod/hack any game they owned.
The screen used to look like this. You could download every single license to everything you’ve ever bought, even if it’s not currently installed. Then you could take your PS5 offline, jailbreak it, yet still have access to all your legitimately purchased digital games. pic.twitter.com/fxvbCQO4dT— Lance McDonald (@manfightdragon) October 3, 2024
Won’t have any impact on legitimate use cases. Just a pain in the ass for people who want to take their PS5 offline hoping in the future to jailbreak it and mod/hack digital games they own.— Lance McDonald (@manfightdragon) October 3, 2024
McDonald added that hackers were once able to access their PSN libraries offline and on jailbroken consoles, highlighting that players are essentially licensing digital games rather than own them.
It was only recently that California passed a law that will force companies like Sony to disclose that players aren’t actually purchasing digital content.
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