Pokemon GO Players Promptly Counter Update Blocking Jailbreaks With Workaround

Some bad news and some good news for those of you who can't get enough of Niantic's popular mobile game.

The bad news is the new update, as game makers are countering cheaters by blocking the app on rooted Android devices and jailbroken iPhones. Officially, this measure is aimed against "bots and scrapers," and the service allows for automatic gameplay on behalf of the user, usually for a fee. However, as such services do not require the user to have a rooted or jailbroken device, this may not be an issue.

Another category of cheating exploits a GPS spoof, by providing the phone with fake coordinates to get unfair advantages over those who travel in physical space searching for virtual pocket monsters. GPS spoofers may find the new update inconvenient.

But there is good news, too. Those who have not bothered with "rooting" or "jailbreaking" will find that the update adds a number of gameplay features, bug and crash fixes, and the ability to select one of your Pokemons to be a virtual buddy that walks along you in augmented reality, collecting bonuses. There is also a Pokemon Go Plus hardware addition, in the form of a small eleсtronic bracelet to warn users of nearby pokemons, thereby eliminating the need to hand carry the phone at all times.

For those leet hackers who insist upon using jailbroken and rooted devices, there is naturally a workaround for the new restrictions. There are two caveats, however. First, the published workaround is only for Android users. Second, the process requires that the phone's OS undergo being flashed, a procedure that ordinarily resets the device to factory defaults.