Nintendo Switch 2 jailbreak released
Archived — this story has rotated out of today’s deck. It is kept here in full.
The gist
Security researcher Sammy Hajhamid released ns2jb, a software-only jailbreak for the Nintendo Switch 2 on firmware 23.0.1.
The tethered hack must be rerun after each reboot, and no kernel exploit or custom firmware exists yet.
Background
Sammy Hajhamid, a security researcher known online as pepsipu, released ns2jb, the first software-only jailbreak for the Nintendo Switch 2, the console made by Nintendo. The working chain starts with a 32-bit integer overflow in SmileBASIC 4, a roughly $25 Switch 1 programming app that still runs on the Switch 2, then moves to a buffer overflow in the console's filesystem service. Hajhamid says the OpenAI Codex coding agent helped build the exploit, and he demonstrated it by modding Mario Kart World. The release follows a separate July userland exploit disclosed by fellow researcher Gezine.
How it unfolded
- Jul 2026Developer Gezine disclosed a separate Switch 1 and Switch 2 userland exploit, which let external code run within a specific app or game but was not yet a way to allow piracy.
- Sep 30, 2026Nintendo shipped firmware 23.0.1, the version ns2jb targets.
- Oct 22, 2026Sammy Hajhamid (pepsipu) released ns2jb, a software-only, tethered jailbreak for the Switch 2 running firmware 23.0.1.
- Oct 22, 2026Hajhamid demonstrated the jailbreak by modding Mario Kart World with Peter Griffin, Hatsune Miku, Cinnamoroll and Red from Angry Birds, saying the mods were vibe-coded in a day.
- Oct 22, 2026Hajhamid said development lasted two weeks and still took substantial effort; an early attempt through the Switch 2's WebKit browser didn't pan out.
Who’s saying what
- Expert
- Gezine, who disclosed a separate July userland exploit, said the work seems legit and noted pepsipu was aware of his own exploit, which is different from ns2jb.
- Caution
- Reporting notes the jailbreak is tethered, so it must be run again after every reboot, and there is no kernel exploit or custom firmware yet.
Still unverified
Claims of permanent custom firmware are unconfirmed and contradicted, as reporting says the exploit is tethered; the coverage reviewed does not report independent confirmation of the jailbreak.