It’s been over 2 months that we have offered the keys to unofficially unlock the bootloaders on Nokia smartphones. Starting with the August security update, Nokia has pushed a patch which stops these unlock keys from working. So, for now, Nokia smartphone users who have updated to the August security release can no longer unlock the bootloader.
The unlock keys no longer work with Nokia phones updated to August patch. Nokia started off by blocking the unlocks on the Nokia 7 plus updated to latest developer preview of Android Pie. Nokia extended it to other devices via the latest security update. We tested it on a Nokia 5, Nokia 6 and Nokia 7 Plus. The Nokia X6 seems to be the only device which is still unlockable. That said, a workaround might still work for some users.
So, instead of offering official unlocks, @Nokiamobile decided to lock down the unofficial ones. Nice! Unlock the bootloader of your Nokia 7 plus before you upgrade. https://t.co/lL6tUTreTq
— Narender Singh (@singh_nsk) August 9, 2018
The loophole was definitely going to be patched at some point. However, we also had hope from HMD Global that they will start unlocking the bootoaders officially before closing down the unofficial methods. But HMD decided to patch the unofficial method without speaking or even hinting of an official service to unlock the bootloaders.
Looking at the situation, it is advisable that you do not lock the bootloader if you have previously unlocked. Already unlocked devices will remain unlocked even after updating to August security release. If you are still looking to unlock the bootloader, then you will have to downgrade your device to an older security update and then order an unlock key through us.
Fastboot throws the following error while trying to flash the unlock keys:
(bootloader) Error: RSA_public_decrypt fail