whatisgithub

What is cyanide?

zeroxjf/cyanide — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-05-18

★ 25Objective-CAudience · generalComplexity · 3/5LicenseSetup · moderate

In one sentence

An iPhone and iPad app that applies system-level tweaks using two patched iOS kernel vulnerabilities, working only on a narrow range of iOS versions before Apple's fix.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((repo))
    What it does
      Tweak installer app
      Uses kernel exploits
      Version-locked window
    Tech stack
      Objective-C
    Use cases
      Status bar customizations
      Home screen layout tweaks
      Performance tweaks
    Audience
      iOS tweak enthusiasts

Code map

Detail Auto

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filefunction / class

What do people build with it?

USE CASE 1

Add status bar overlays for battery temperature, free memory, and network speed on a supported iOS version.

USE CASE 2

Customize the home screen dock icon count, grid layout, and icon padding without a full jailbreak.

USE CASE 3

Underclock the CPU and GPU with the Powercuff tweak to reduce thermal load.

USE CASE 4

Disable the App Library or icon animations through SpringBoard tweaks.

What is it built with?

Objective-C

How does it compare?

zeroxjf/cyanideadrienrl1/appdropnokia-guy123/rwfilemanager
Stars252624
LanguageObjective-CObjective-CObjective-C
Setup difficultymoderatemoderatehard
Complexity3/52/54/5
Audiencegeneralgeneraldeveloper

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you get it running?

Difficulty · moderate Time to first run · 30min

Only works on iOS 17.0-18.7.1 or 26.0-26.0.1 on unsupported hardware, A19 and M5 devices are excluded.

The open-source portions are under AGPL-3.0, meaning you can use and modify them but must share source for any network-served derivative, the private experimental tweaks are fully proprietary.

So what is it?

Cyanide is an iPhone and iPad app that lets you apply system-level customizations, called tweaks, without a traditional jailbreak. It works by taking advantage of two specific kernel security vulnerabilities in iOS (CVE-2025-43510 and CVE-2025-43520) that were present in iOS 17.0 through 18.7.1 and iOS 26.0 through 26.0.1. Apple patched those bugs in iOS 18.7.2 and 26.1, so the app only works within that version window. A19 and M5 devices are not supported. The app is a fork of an existing project called darksword-kexploit-fun, restructured with a two-tab interface: an installer tab for applying tweaks and a settings tab for configuration. It does not include the browser-delivered parts of the original exploit chain, focusing instead on the native kernel stages wrapped in an Objective-C app. The tweaks available cover a range of system modifications. Status bar additions can overlay battery temperature, free memory, and network speed. Home screen layout tweaks let you change dock icon count, grid columns and rows, icon scale, and padding. A performance tweak called Powercuff simulates thermal pressure to underclock the CPU and GPU. Several SpringBoard tweaks can remove the App Library, disable icon animations, make the display wake instantly, enable double-tap to lock, and turn off over-the-air update prompts. Beta tweaks include a notification grouping overlay, an icon theming engine that swaps icons by bundle ID, and an Apple Watch pairing range override. Experimental tweaks, gated to Patreon supporters, include a split-view mode for running two apps side by side on iPhone, live numeric signal strength readouts, and a typing indicator banner. The open-source portions of the project are licensed under AGPL-3.0, while the experimental tweak implementations in a private submodule are all rights reserved and distributed only in compiled form.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1
Which iOS versions and devices does this tool support, and why is the window so narrow?
Prompt 2
Explain the difference between the stable, beta, and Patreon-gated experimental tweaks in this app.
Prompt 3
Walk me through installing the status bar and home screen tweaks in this app.
Prompt 4
What is the Powercuff tweak and how does it affect device performance?

Frequently asked questions

What is cyanide?

An iPhone and iPad app that applies system-level tweaks using two patched iOS kernel vulnerabilities, working only on a narrow range of iOS versions before Apple's fix.

What language is cyanide written in?

Mainly Objective-C. The stack also includes Objective-C.

What license does cyanide use?

The open-source portions are under AGPL-3.0, meaning you can use and modify them but must share source for any network-served derivative, the private experimental tweaks are fully proprietary.

How hard is cyanide to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated moderate, with roughly 30min to a first successful run.

Who is cyanide for?

Mainly general.

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