how do I know if my MacBook was jailbroken?

how do I know if my MacBook was jailbroken? I opened my Tradestation software/app on my MacBook Air and it told me that my Mac had been jailbroken? Thanks for the assist!

MacBook Air 13″, macOS 11.6

Posted on Sep 21, 2021 5:59 PM

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Posted on Sep 24, 2021 9:42 AM

As a side note, if your Mac was ever to get truly jailbroken (at the firmware level), that would require putting specialized/hacked firmware onto the M1 chip inside your MacBook Air. That process requires physical access to your Mac, and it would likely erase all data.


There are legitimate, Apple-provided ways to modify macOS system files (not the firmware), but doing so would require physical possession of your Mac, and your login password to change the secure boot policy. Also, the next macOS update would undo those changes.


If you are still concerned and want to be absolutely sure that your Mac is running known-good firmware, back up your data with Time Machine, and then follow these steps to revive the firmware in your MacBook Air using a second Mac: Revive or restore a Mac with Apple silicon with Apple Configurator 2 - Apple Support

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Sep 24, 2021 9:42 AM in response to reggfxn

As a side note, if your Mac was ever to get truly jailbroken (at the firmware level), that would require putting specialized/hacked firmware onto the M1 chip inside your MacBook Air. That process requires physical access to your Mac, and it would likely erase all data.


There are legitimate, Apple-provided ways to modify macOS system files (not the firmware), but doing so would require physical possession of your Mac, and your login password to change the secure boot policy. Also, the next macOS update would undo those changes.


If you are still concerned and want to be absolutely sure that your Mac is running known-good firmware, back up your data with Time Machine, and then follow these steps to revive the firmware in your MacBook Air using a second Mac: Revive or restore a Mac with Apple silicon with Apple Configurator 2 - Apple Support

Sep 21, 2021 7:12 PM in response to reggfxn

Hi there! I can explain this. This is a false positive as the app in question has not been fully updated for IOS 14 compatibility. I would first see if there is an update for the app in the App Store. If there is not, I would contact the developer and let them know.


As a side note, as long as you didn't try to jailbreak your Mac, you are all good

Sep 21, 2021 7:16 PM in response to Community User

Thank You NachiThePanda! This was extremely helpful I was worried there for a few minutes… I had download the app on my MacBook Air which as you know has the chip - That allows me to download apps from the App Store that I would otherwise he was on my iPhone. I appreciate explanation of the false positive. I will let the software developer know/tradestation. I have heard of others complaining about many glitches with tradestation - Despite the overall awesome service that they offer.

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how do I know if my MacBook was jailbroken?

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