This is not surprising news, but it is official. RIM has now confirmed that jailbreaking, or rooting your BlackBerry will void its warranty. Adrian Stone, Director of the BlackBerry Security Incident Response Team (BBSIRT) confirmed the policy on the BlackBerry Business Blog.
Mr. Stone believes rooting a device increases the risk to data loss and overall security. He might be right, but I think it could be the other way around.
To be clear, RIM recommends against installing any jailbreaking tool. Customers who use a jailbreaking tool on BlackBerry products void the manufacturer warranty and also increase the long-term risk of negatively impacting the stability and user experience of their BlackBerry products. Use of a jailbreaking tool could also amplify the impact and severity of a future security issue, making your personal data more vulnerable to theft and more difficult to protect.
Mr. Stone believes rooting a device increases the risk to data loss and overall security. He might be right, but I think it could be the other way around.