Smart Sign

Smart Sign is an iOS app that shows product specs and is installed on the "Smart Sign" iPads inside Apple Stores. This app can’t be exited with the home button. There is a secret gesture to enter the app's control center on "Smart Sign" iPads which is shared on a need to know basis among retail employees and which has never been leaked.

Technical Investigation
The app itself is not what disables the home button; it is system-wide and enforced by SpringBoard. In fact, Smart Sign iPads have a .mobileconfig profile installed which sets the key SBStoreDemoAppLock to true in com.apple.springboard.plist. The only way to quit an app when this key is enabled is holding HOME and POWER buttons until the device reboots.

Apple sets the key in com.apple.springboard.plist by using a mobile configuration profile installed on the device. The profile can be removed with the password "Apple123". If you want to try it on your device, you can find below a similar version that works on any device and that is not locked.

 <!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">  PayloadContent PayloadDescription Disables the home button. PayloadDisplayName Home Button Lock PayloadIdentifier com.zchristopoulos.kiosk PayloadOrganization Zachary Christopoulos PayloadType com.apple.defaults.managed PayloadUUID B2D02E2D-BAC5-431B-8A29-4B91F71C9FC1 PayloadVersion 1            PayloadContent DefaultsDomainName com.apple.springboard DefaultsData SBStoreDemoAppLock PayloadDescription Disables Home Button PayloadDisplayName Home Button Lock PayloadIdentifier com.zchristopoulos.hbkill PayloadOrganization Zachary Christopoulos PayloadType Configuration PayloadUUID 614D1FE3-F80D-4643-AF6B-D10C4CC8737A PayloadVersion 1

(originally posted here)

Version History

 * 1.4.1
 * 1.5.2
 * 1.6.1
 * 1.6.3
 * 1.7

Links
Install Smart Sign (requires AppleConnect account)