Celebrity iPhone hacker swaps for Car

George Hotz of Glen Rock, N.J., after coming in the limelight with his iPhone unlocking adventure is now reaping more benefits for his endeavor. Following his appearances on several national television networks, and being the subject of various newspaper articles, the 17-year-old fresher at college, besides his celebrity status, already has a job.

CertiCell, a mobile-phone repair company based in Louisville, Ky., has enrolled the teenager for a paid consulting. The company will also give him a $40,000 car.

Hotz had proclaimed on his blog that he would sell the unlocked iPhone to the highest bidder and that he intends to buy a car with the money along with iPhones for those who had collaborated with him in the technical course of action.

Terry Daidone, the founder of Certicell offered a deal for the iPhone. The smart teen traded it for ‘a sweet Nissan 350Z’ and three 8GB iPhone units. “I will be sending the iPhones, unlocked if they wish, to jpetrie(the first donator), gray(the reversing genius), and iProof(who is truly amazing at finding stuff online) Thanks a lot everyone,” Hotz said on his blog.

After the online bidding for his iPhone went beyond of $25-million, Hots realised the bids were probably not authentic. “I understand no one would ever pay millions for this phone,” wrote the whiz-kid on his blog requesting those who were genuinely interested to contact him through e-mail.

CertiCell, among other things, runs a facility in Hong Kong that refurbishes old cell phones. The company said that currently it has no plans to make commercial use of the unlocking strategies that their new employee is proficient at.

Some legal issues have been raised about the hacking technique and CertiCell said it is cautious about the matter and will announce its plans for the modified phone on Sept. 14.

Hotz, set to be a freshman this fall at the Rochester Institute of Technology, would probably arrive in Louisville on Friday to pick up his Nissan. The pay for his consulting service is yet to be decided but Jake Ducey, a CertiCell spokesman, said the teenager will work from school in Rochester, N.Y.

“He's a bright, hard-working kid,” Ducey said. “It's the type of people we like to have working at CertiCell.”