PS4 Jailbreak: The Status in 2023

A growing number of PS4 users are “stuck” on Firmwares 9.03/9.04/9.50/9.51/9.60/10.00/10.01/10.50, and wondering when we should expect a new Jailbreak. Here’s what we know.

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PS4 Jailbreak – The current status

The latest and greatest PS4 Jailbreak was the pOOBs4 Jailbreak release for firmware 9.00 back in 2021. A lot of tools and homebrew games have been made available to Jailbroken PS4 9.00 since then. Firmware 9.00 is recent enough that it’s still fairly easy to get an exploitable console at a reasonable price (see below)

But there’s a growing number of people stuck on recent firmwares 9.03 up to 10.50,  wondering what’s coming for them.

TL,DR: There is no publicly known kernel exploit for firmwares 9.03 and above, let alone discussions of a release. the best option for you if you’re looking to Jailbreak your PS4, is to buy a PS4 running firmware 9.00 or lower, at this point (eBay is your friend). We used to recommend bundles that might ship with specific PS4 Firmware versions, but at this point in the console’s lifespan, you will have better luck buying a used PS4 9.00, than trying to get a new model, as those have been out of stock for some time now.

With that being said, for recent firmwares, the Mast1c0re Exploit is an exploit that leverages a bug in PS2 remakes (such as Okage: shadow King), and that runs on the PS4. In theory this works on all firmwares up to 10.50 included (the latest firmware at the time of writing). That exploit isn’t a Kernel exploit and doesn’t constitute a Jailbreak, but lets you run PS2 Iso and PS2 Homebrew on the PS4. Details here.

We understand though that the limitations of Mast1c0re can be frustrating for those of you running firmwares 9.03 or above, and expecting a full fledged Jailbreak. For those of you who are stuck with a higher firmware and for some reason cannot buy a 9.00 PS4, there are two important rules you’ll need to follow: 1) patience, and 2) do not update your PS4.

PS4 9.03/9.04/9.50/9.51/9.60/10.00/10.01/10.50 Jailbreak? Patience

Patience is key if you’re waiting for a PS4 Jailbreak. As I’ve mentioned before, the average time between two jailbreaks is around 9 months. But it has been as low as 4 months, and as high as 2 years in the past. And there’s nothing guaranteeing this limit won’t be breached.

Without any significant news on the exploit front, nobody can really predict how long it’s going to take until the next one. The last Jailbreak for PS4 was about a year and a half ago, so we’re reaching the historical “longest” time there’s ever been between two Jailbreaks, which explains why everyone’s getting a bit anxious.

To “Jailbreak” a PS4, we typically need two exploits:

First, a “usermode” exploit, which is an entry point to run unsigned code through data that you have control of, as a PS4 user. Second, a privilege escalation exploit, also known as kernel exploit, which gives you greater control of the device, allowing things such as Homebrew ENablers, or “in-RAM” Custom firmwares.

PS4 9.03/9.04/9.50/9.51/9.60/10.00/10.01/10.50 Jailbreak status

Usermode exploit – Green

The good news for  users stuck on higher firmwares is that we seem to have several usermode exploits for these firmwares.

• On all firmwares up to 10.50 included, the Mast1c0re exploit could be a very good entry point for future hacks. One big limitation though is that it requires you to have purchased the Okage Shadow King PS2 game through the PSN. In order to do so, you need to be on the latest firmware at the time you want to purchase, so it’s tricky to advise whether you should update or not.
• on 9.03/9.04 only – The BD-JB exploit chain by TheFloW, which leverages vulnerabilities in the Blu-Ray driver of the PS4, could be used as an entry point on these two firmwares.
• on 9.03/9.04 only: Last but not least, this usermode exploit is the same Webkit vulnerability that was used for the 9.00 Jailbreak, which is still apparently open up to firmware 9.04 included, according to scene veteran Zecoxao:

webkit did not get patched from 9.03 to 9.04 (confirmed by an anonymous source). something else did

— Control_eXecute (@notzecoxao) February 19, 2022

Firmware 9.50 however patched the Webkit vulnerability, so we already know that people who choose to update to 9.50 or above will potentially have a harder time exploiting their console in the future.

its also patched on 9.50 😉

— Control_eXecute (@notzecoxao) February 11, 2022

In summary, all current firmwares have a potential usermode entry, although clearly lower firmwares, in particular 9.03 and 9.04 have the upper hand here with multiple possibilities.

Kernel exploit – Red

There is no ongoing discussion on the scene about a “new” kernel exploit, for any firmware. None of the reputable hackers has shared a “hint” of anything that would be kept under wraps at the moment. Which doesn’t mean there isn’t anything happening under the hood, but certainly indicates that people should be patient.

In general, the hackers collectively try to “time” their releases in a way that they do not feel wasteful. This often means they will wait until a specific firmware patches the exploit, before releasing the exploit.

Waiting for a PS4 Jailbreak? Do not update

Unless a hardware vulnerability is found on the PS4, the PS4 Jailbreak world is going to remain a cat-and-mouse game between Sony and hackers. Kernel exploits will get patched as soon as they are released (and nowadays even before they are released), which means if you keep your PS4 up to date to the latest firmware, you’re pretty much guaranteed you’ll never be able to Jailbreak your console.

Keeping your PS4 on as low a firmware as you can is pretty much a prerequisite if you want a Jailbreak. It has several drawbacks such as the impossibility to access any online services on the device, including playing online. But it’s a choice.

Conclusion – PS4 10.50 Jailbreak ETA Wen?

Firmwares 9.03 and 9.04 are still impacted by three known usermode vulnerabilities. Firmwares 9.50 up to 10.50 remain vulnerable to one of them: the Mast1c0re exploit.

The rule to stay on as low a firmware as you possibly can always remains true, but I’m not sure we can say that 9.03/9.04 are in a more convenient situation than other firmwares at the moment.

Specifically, no kernel exploit is publicly being talked about (let alone discussions of a release) at the time of this writing, so the probability for a new PS4 Jailbreak “soon” is extremely low. People on these firmwares should expect to wait multiple months, or buy a second-hand 9.00 PS4.