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Earlier today it was revealed that Sprint’s Nexus 5 and Nexus 6 would be receiving a security update that addressed the troublesome Stagefright vulnerability. Thankfully it appears our suspicions were correct: the update is headed out to mostly all contemporary Nexus devices today.
Those devices include the Nexus 4, Nexus 5, Nexus 6, Nexus 7, Nexus 9, Nexus 10 and even the Nexus Player. Not only will the patch plug up the Stagefright hole we’ve heard so much about, but it also contains fixes for a number if issues Google highlights in their periodic security bulletins that are sent to OEMs and carriers.
That’s not all, though. Google has made a hard commitment to providing monthly security patches for these contemporary Nexus devices for up to 3 years, as well as reaffirming their commitment to keeping Nexus devices updated to the latest version of the Android platform for at least 18 months after launch. The fixes will also be pushed to the AOSP as soon as they’re available, so OEMs, developers and more can be sure to have the latest fixes available to them without delay.
Security has been a big talking point for mobile operating systems in the past year, with Apple spending a good chunk of their most recent developer conference banging the importance of security into our heads.
Google has also been shouting on that front, and while Android may naturally be more prone to vulnerabilities, malware and other nastiness, the company has made great strides to make sure Android users stay protected. For instance, Google Play scans each and every app for malicious code, and Google also lets you opt-in to regular device scannings on newer Android phones to make sure your phone doesn’t have a harmful app on it.
All of that amounts to just 0.15% of devices being affected maliciously in cases where apps only came from the Google Play Store. Those who install third-party apps do so at their own risk, of course, so Google can’t be held totally responsible for whatever the number may be in that case.
As for Stagefright and any other possible withstanding issues, let’s hope manufacturers and carriers can get their non-Nexus smartphones and tablets updated without much delay.
[via Google]
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