The newly-released Mac OS X 10.5.6 update keeps Macs from recognizing the iPhone in DFU mode, making it impossible to jailbreak / unlock it using PwnageTool or QuickPwn, iPhone Alley reveals, citing reliable sources.

The report notes that users of jailbroken handsets should wait for the iPhone Dev Team to come up with an update for the tools used to hack iPhone, iPhone 3G, and iPod touch. However, this is not the first time Apple has thrown sand in the wheels of the iPhone Dev Team.

We reported a while ago that Apple handset users could kiss unlocking their iPhones goodbye, should they use iTunes to upgrade the tool. Apple had changed the iPhone's baseband, so that it would be almost impossible to unlock in the future. A description of the term “baseband” was offered by the Dev Team as such (excerpts):

The ‘baseband’ is the generic name given to the internal components of the iPhone that handle the phone calls and Internet access ... When a software update is released and presented to you within iTunes, the baseband is sometimes updated (to fix bugs or add new features). The 2.2 update for the iPhone 3G contains such an update, so running the vanilla updater straight away with iTunes will reprogram and update the baseband.

The iPhone Dev Team also noted in November that late 2008 MacBooks presented an issue with DFU mode. It had been previously revealed that Apple's unibody MacBooks were equipped with tools that disabled PwnageTool.

Softpedia doesn't condone jailbreaking / unlocking your iPhone / iPod touch or any other device. Using hacks may render your device unusable, or may considerably reduce the quality of your experience using the respective device. If you choose to download and install the PwnageTool, you do it at your own risk.