Jailbreaking the iPad might void your Apple warranty and even your terms of service from AT&T, however the US government has just ruled the practice legal under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). The exemption applies for three years until the next rulemaking review, and brings the practices of independent software developers into the mainstream.

Apple had been arguing that jailbreaking is illegal under the DMCA, since copyright protections can be circumvented when an iPad is running unofficial modifications to its operating system or unsanctioned software applications. The US Copyright Office did not agree that the only reason to jailbreak is to pirate software and violate copyright law.