The steps are quick and we simply need to create a PS4 folder on a pendrive that has previously been fformatted to a FAT32 format. On PC or Mac, you insert this pendrive, create the folder and create another folder inside which we will call “Update”. When we have it, we download the corresponding update file from the PlayStation support page and save it in this second created folder. We keep the file named PS4UPDATE.PUP in this folder. Once ready, we connect the pendrive or USB drive to the PS4 console and start it in safe mode (press and hold the power button and release it after the second beep) When you are inside, choose the third option that gives you safe mode : Update the system software.
In the options, choose “Update from USB storage device” and accept with the corresponding button to complete the installation.
Featured versions
From the beginning to the time of writing this article there is around of 65 different versions of PS4 that have been arriving from time to time to add news, changes and improvements to the Sony console.
The latest is version 9.00 (at the time of writing but this will change depending on when you read the article) which was launched in September 2021. But there have been many and many of them have been important thanks to the fact that they introduce changes in the sections of messages, in games, in trophies or in compatibility with applications, for example.
Some of the features that PS4 version 8.50 introduced is that we can use Share Play in “Group” with people using a PS5, for example. In addition, in “Messages” we can activate or deactivate the notifications of the groups to which we belong. Other changes are also coming, such as the possibility of hiding a game and that other players do not see that you are playing or the function disappears “Communities”. The file format for extended storage has also been changed or the “Request to join” button has been added to add you to a game session.
At the end of the year 2020 a new update of the firmware of the PS4 is launched whose main change is that we can deactivate the audio of the game chat. There are no other big improvements beyond this change except for the audio settings.
Launched in October 2020, it came with changes in sections such as Party or Messages. For example, we can create a new group to start a party or save it even when it’s finished. Also, messages are added to the screen during the Party, for example. Also other changes: group members will be able to see when your mic is muted and it even starts allowing people to join groups even if there are members who have blocked you.
In 2019 the firmware version 6.5 arrived that offered Remote play on iOS devices by downloading the application from the App Store to connect to the PS4 system, for example. This is the main change and compatibility improvement that is available from March 2019 with the firmware.
Another of the great updates of recent times is version 5.00 of the PS5 firmware that brought the possibility of managing the accounts of family members, customizing the colors or some changes in the notifications of the console. This version is from October 2017. One of the most important points was the ability to add PS4 users as family members to manage parental controls, for example.
As administrator we can “Configure” the family and adjust and customize the uses that each member of it can make. But also other improvements such as the design of the messages or changes in the notifications that allow disabling them during video playback or choosing their color.
There are also other versions that have not added big changes like version 8.01 released in November 2020, for example. Most of these updates are simply intended to improve performance or make minor modifications that improve overall performancel. The same happens with versions like the PS4 signature 7.55 of August 2020 that improved the performance of the system. And with others like version 7.50, 6.71, 6.70 and many more. Minor updates and even optional some of them that arrived before the year 2017 to the console.
Firmware that can be hacked
Depending on the firmware, some may have been hacked. The PlayStation 4 has been vulnerable for years as long as we have an outdated version of firmware, an old version in which an exploit has been discovered. This changes as Sony fixes these issues with new updates that make it harder to hack until Find a new security hole.
In early 2018 it was found an exploit in the PS4 kernel that, together with another exploit in the WebKit that allowed to enter the code to take advantage of it, it was possible to do jailbreak PlayStation 4. To do this, it was only necessary to have a version 4.55 or earlier of the firmware. Little by little, new exploits have been advanced. For example, one of the most recent ones allowed to hack consoles with firmware 7.02 or earlier. Although, as we say, this changes regularly and possible errors are fixed through security updates.
Until very recently, it was possible to jailbreak PS4s that have firmware 7.50 or earlier. How? It was the hacker sleirsgoevy who released the jailbreak for PS4 version 7.50, based on the IPv6 UAF kernel exploit revealed by TheFloW in January 2021. In March of this year, the Sony PS4 jailbreak was announced and announced also that it was executable in versions like 7.50 or versions like 7.51 or 7.55 of firmware.
This is no longer available for new versions released in recent months that fix security flaws but at the beginning of the year 2021 any PS4 console that had not been updated since September 2020 was easily pirated. Although with consequences: it is convenient to make a backup of PS4, but we must also take into account running your account on a modified console can lead to being banned and losing all your games, in addition to not being able to use it online. Having an old version of firmware also exposes you to other vulnerabilities and prevents you from enjoying the latest news from Sony, so We do not recommend that you make these types of modifications to your console.
PS5, to avoid these types of exploits, does not have a web browser, which is one of the entry points for kernel exploits. PS4 therefore can hack relatively easily as long as we have not updated the firmware.
Different is the situation with Xbox One, which has been the first console that has not been pirated, as well as there is no way to emulate their games. The console is very well protected, and the existence of the developer mode to install apps or emulators, along with the fact that its games also come out on PC, discourages hacking this console.