PS4:Scene History

2013

November 15th: PS4 is launched in North America.

November 29th: PS4 is launched in Europe.

December 13th: PS4 is launched in the Middle East, Africa, and South America; and is shortly followed by releases in other regions.

2014

February 22nd: PS4 is launched in Japan.

August 20th: Firmware 1.76 is released.

October 24th: Firmware 2.00 is released, patching kernel exploits present in firmware 1.76.

2015

October 17th: Davee releases source code for PlayStation Vita WebKit exploit.

October 24th: Nas and Proxima bring the WebKit exploit to PS4 and demonstrate a proof of concept.

September 2nd: CTurt releases the GameBoy emulator Cinoop; the first emulator to run on a PS4.

December 6th: CTurt confirms a kernel exploit in official firmware 1.76.

December 15th: CTurt showcases the PS4’s root directory and processes in RAM.

December 18th: CTurt publishes kernel exploit technical details.

December 24th: Images of devkit filesystem dumps surface which contains Linux files and MS-DOS.

December 25th: Zecoxao releases devkit file system for download (Beta Firmware 0.8.2).

December 30th: Fail0verflow showcases Linux running on the PS4 and run a Pokémon demo.

2016

January 4th: Fail0verflow publishes their fork of the Linux kernel and get 3D acceleration drivers to work.

January 6th: PS4 Elf Loader and Other Tools Released.

January 18th: CTurt and qwertyoruiop publish new dlclose kernel exploit details.

March 2nd: Scene developers have GitHub accounts compromised; the Bad IRET exploit source code is leaked to the public.

March 2nd: Fail0verflow released PS4 kexec code to load the Linux kernel from Orbis OS.

March 24th: Zer0xFF releases dlclose kernel exploit source code; applicable to official firmware 2.03 and below.

April 2nd: kR105 releases fully operational USB dlclose exploit tool.

April 6th: Fx0day releases a tutorial for end-users to fully install Ubuntu.

April 7th: Senaxx shows a screenshot of custom images on the home screen tiles, marking the first visual customization for the native operating system.

April 21st: Fire30 releases a proof of concept of a WebKit exploit for official firmware 2.04 and below.

April 24th: OsirisX releases video demonstrating Steam, and the game Bastion, running on PS4 Linux.

April 28th: Flatz releases code to enable Debug Settings for retail consoles, is added to CTurt’s payload.

May 17th: Hitodama adds kernel ELF loading to the native PS4 toolchain.

May 18th: CTurt publishes details on a new kernel exploit that may affect all firmwares up to and including 3.50 firmware. SETFKEY and sendmsg

May 20th: Qwertyoruiop releases information regarding a WebKit exploit on official firmware 3.50.

May 22nd: Hunter128 releases a PoC for the WebKit exploit on official firmware 3.50.

June 22nd: 3.55 firmware released.

July 6th: Red-EyeX32 releases PSPROXY - Allows 3.50 users to play online.

August 6th: PS Vita Webkit exploit (HENkaku) confirmed to work on PS4 official firmware 3.55 and below.

August 12th: zecoxao releases notes on how to bypass PFS protection on 1.76 official firmware (source).

August 18th: TheoryWrong releases 3.55 File Browser.

August 18th: Specter ports limited version of PS4 Playground to 3.55.

August 20th: Keyaku releases PKG Unpacking Tools.

August 20th: Cryptogenic releases PS4Console - A successor to PS4 Playground for 3.55 firmware.

August 29th: eXtreme releases permanent Internet Browser mod to activate the web browser without PSN.

September 10th: EPEEN releases first fully decrypted game backup - FIFA 14.

September 13th: 4.00 firmware is released, patching the 3.55 WebKit exploit.

October 24th: Chinese group Chaitin demonstrates Linux on 4.01 at GeekPwn, confirming a private 4.01 kernel exploit.

October 27th: Chaitin releases their PS4 ROP tool, with exploits stripped out, which was used to exploit firmware 4.01.

November 13th: Kurt2467, BadChoicesZ, and SC58 demonstrate trophy unlocking on 1.76 in a Call of Duty Advanced Warfare demo.

November 22nd: Kurt2467 and BadChoicesZ demonstrate game modding on GTA V.

November 27th: SAMU is decrypted. Zecoxao also proves that he has permanently spoofed his console to 9.90 to prevent updates.

2017

March 29th: Qwertyoruiop publicly releases a WebKit exploit for 4.07 (already patched in 4.50), and exploits 4.06 kernel in private, which is applicable to 4.50.

April 11th: 4.55 firmware is released.

April 12th: A PS4 memory editor, PS4ME, is released by j0lama.

April 19th: Qwertyoruiop posts proof of a full exploit of 4.50, which is also applicable to 4.55.

September 24th: P.T. is demonstrated on 1.76 firmware and a screenshot of the first homebrew is released.

September 25th: Homebrew execution from USB storage device is achieved.

July 10th: Chinese modchip “MTX Key” is released, allowing unlimited game sharing for firmware 4.71.

October 1st: BigBoss releases LibOrbis, a set of libraries and samples for PS4 homebrew development.

October 3rd: 5.00 firmware released.

October 10th: TheoryWrong and ZeraTron release the first PS4 homebrew with a use, a PSID/IDPS viewer.

October 15th: Flatz provides video proof of a custom PKG being installed on 4.55 firmware. Qwertyoruiop releases a screenshot of a 5.00 WebKit exploit.

October 19th: fail0verflow releases the “Namedobj” kernel exploit for 4.05 firmwares and below, along with a full writeup of the exploit.

December 26th: SpecterDev releases a 4.05 jailbreak and write up.

2018

January 10th: AlexAltea announces a PS4 emulator for PC called Orbital.

January 11th: cfwprophet releases Fake PKG Generator, a utility to create installable PKGs.

January 17th: VV1LD (wildcard777) releases PS4HEN, a homebrew enabler.

January 19th: XVortex releases PKG Kitchen, a tool to create PS4 packages.

January 20th: Flatz releases proof of PS2 game backups running via PS4HEN, and cfwprophet adds support for PS2 PKGs.

January 26th: cfwprophet releases PS2 Fake PKG Generator, a tool to create installable PS2 PKGs with configuration settings.

January 27th: XVortex releases GenGP4, a utility which replaces PKG Kitchen to dump PS4 games.

January 31st: Qwertyoruiop gives hints on a bpfwrite kernel exploit that works up to 5.05 firmware.

February 3rd: vpikhur describes and demonstrates a 5.XX exploit for PS4’s Rest mode at REcon in Brussels.

February 6th: PS4 Theme Editor, a tool to make custom themes, is released by yyoossk.

February 22nd: Duowan BBS releases PS4Cheater, a debugger program to create game cheats.

February 23rd: Stooged releases a payload to allow VR headsets on later firmwares to work on lower firmwares.

February 26th: Qwertyoruiop releases a kernel exploit for 4.55 with no userland exploit.

February 27th: SpecterDev, with help from qwertyoruiop and flatz, releases a jailbreak for 4.55 firmware using the 4.55 kernel exploit and a 5.03 WebKit exploit. ALEXZZZ9 releases a 5.01 WebKit exploit proof of concept and source.

February 28th: Reazer releases an Android-based payload injector app called PS4 Tool.

March 1st: SpecterDev releases a write up for the 5.03 WebKit exploit used in the 4.55 jailbreak.

March 29th: SpecterDev releases a write up for the 4.55 kernel exploit.

May 2nd: Unity plugins and developer keys for developing games and applications for PS4 and PS Vita leak.

May 13th: Cfwprophet releases LibHomebrew (LibHB), a homebrew programming library based on the original SDK.

May 11th: Qwertyoruiop gives a talk at 0x41con detailing the history of his journey through exploiting the PS4 up to 5.01. He later uploads the slides to a "crack.bargains" website. The PDF can be found File:02r0.pdf.

May 28th: SpecterDev releases a kernel exploit implementation for 5.05/5.07. Qwertyoruiop also releases his 5.01 kernel exploit.

June 4th: MiraLaTijera successfully updates a 4.74 console with a broken Blu-Ray drive to 5.05, proving that it is possible to update consoles with broken/missing Blu-Ray drives.

November 9th: Golden and Sistro release PS4Ren, a way to enable remote play on 5.05 consoles.

2019

December 27th: RetroArch is unofficially ported to PS4.

2020

January 2nd: CrazyVoid announces that the OpenOrbis team is working on a custom homebrew SDK (PS4 Userland DevKit).

January 19th: Sleirsgoevy ports DOOM to Bluray Java.

January 20th: SpecterDev announces the first Hello World app created with a custom homebrew SDK.

February 24th: Charlyzard releases an offline account activator.

May 11th: Team Orbis releases the open source Mira Project, a suite of homebrew tools. SpecterDev releases PS4 Toolchain, an open source homebrew SDK.

June 24th: Sony announces a bug bounty program for PlayStation offering from $100 to over $50,000 USD per bug depending on severity.

July 6th: Thefl0w releases a kernel exploit for firmware 7.02 and below, also claiming a $10,000 bug bounty from Sony.

July 15th: Wildcard releases a SYSCON glitching tool to dump the PS4/Vita SYSCON flash.

July 17th: Sleirsgoevy releases a 6.72 jailbreak implementation.

July 18th: Zecoxao posts instructions for backporting 6.72 games to 5.05, and Flatz releases scripts for it.

2021

January 12th: theflow0 discloses a new kernel exploit.

March 4th: Sleirsgoevy implements TheFLoW’s kernel exploit in a full exploit release.

March 21st: GoldHEN is released by SiSTR0.

April 18th: Developer illusion creates an unofficial patch for 60FPS and custom resolutions for Uncharted 4.

May 31st: Developer illusion creates unofficial patches for Final Fantasy VII Remake, Concrete Genie, Life is Strange, Silent Hill PT, Persona 5 Royal, Batman Arkham Knight, Ghost of Tsushima, and Uncharted - The Lost Legacy to run at 60FPS.

October 28th:: Firmware 9.00 webkit exploit is released by Sleirsgoevy.

December 12th: The pOOBs4 firmware 9.00 jailbreak is released by ChendoChap.

2022

January 1st: ConsoleMods.org launches!

2024

April 30th: PPPwn, a kernel remote code execution exploit for firmware versions up to 11.00, is released by TheFlow.