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Removing a Mac's Firmware Password By Reflashing EFI ROM

According to Apple, the only way to remove an unknown firmware password from a MacBook (2011 and later) is to take it to the Apple Store with the original proof-of-purchase. However, I've found that there is another way, which I've been successful with for the unibody MacBook Pro--it's essentially just modifying a couple bytes in the EFI ROM, which should be simple. What's not simple, however, is figuring out how to read and write to the EFI chip. In this post, I'll talk about the process that I figured out and what worked for me.

The Official Method

Apple's method of resetting the firmware password is not reproducible, as Apple generates an SCBO file that unlocks the EFI using their private key. You can read more about this process here. The problem with this system is that, if you are in the unfortunate situation of neither having the firmware unlock pass

#md5 hash of most used password 123456
#ref: https://twitter.com/TekDefense/status/294556153151647744
https://github.com/search?q=e10adc3949ba59abbe56e057f20f883e&type=Code&ref=searchresults
#DB_PASSWORD
#ref: http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2014/Mar/343
https://github.com/search?q=define%28%22DB_PASSWORD%22&type=Code&ref=searchresults
#Possible SQL injection
#ref: http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2013/Jun/15
@atcuno
atcuno / gist:3425484ac5cce5298932
Last active March 25, 2024 13:55
HowTo: Privacy & Security Conscious Browsing

The purpose of this document is to make recommendations on how to browse in a privacy and security conscious manner. This information is compiled from a number of sources, which are referenced throughout the document, as well as my own experiences with the described technologies.

I welcome contributions and comments on the information contained. Please see the How to Contribute section for information on contributing your own knowledge.

Table of Contents

@saetia
saetia / gist:1623487
Last active May 1, 2024 19:55
Clean Install – OS X 10.11 El Capitan

OS X Preferences


most of these require logout/restart to take effect

# Enable character repeat on keydown
defaults write -g ApplePressAndHoldEnabled -bool false

# Set a shorter Delay until key repeat