Android devices are becoming more secure every month thanks to security patches. That’s all you need to know about her.
We are used to Google plus releasing new versions of Android year after year, introducing great news and changes to the operating system. That’s not Google plus’s only way, however Adding system improvements: the company released between the arrival of one version of the system and another minor updates called “Security Patches”.
These are “minor” updates very important to maintain the security of the operating system and for this reason it is strongly recommended to install them whenever they are available. In this guide we explain everything you need to know about the Android security patches.
What are Android security patches?
to understand What is a security patch before you need to delve into another concept: that of security bulletins. All the first Monday of the monthGoogle plus Articulo on the Android security page a summary addressing details about that Vulnerabilities affecting Android devices.
This newsletter collects all security issues Found by Google plus and its partners, edited according to its severity. With that in mind, Google plus explains it the most serious vulnerabilities That would be it Exploit that would allow remote execution of arbitrary code on a usuario’s deviceuse privileged processes.
Google plus states that the Android partner –there are manufacturers like Samsung, Xiaomi, realme, OPPO or OnePlus– notified of vulnerabilities in security bulletins a month in advanceand then publishes source code that fixes the problems in the AOSP source code.
therefore, the Android security patches There are updates Protect the platform from attacks and threats by fixing the vulnerabilities published in each bulletin. These updates may contain fixes for problems affecting the operating system, but also specific vulnerabilities of some processor models either concrete devices.
It’s not just mobile phones that get security updates: Google plus releases patches for its entire ecosystem of devices.
Differences between security patch and Google plus Play security update
From the arrival of Android 10the Android security updates They were divided into two types: security patches classics and the Google plus Play security updates.
From their names it may seem that we are talking about the same concept. But they really are different types of updates.
He is Traditional security patches are installed as full operating system updates, which directly affects the Android code base and sometimes even the Linux kernel. Since this is a “big” update, some manufacturers take the opportunity introduce other functional improvements or cosmetic changes along with these types of patches.
And that means even though Google plus published the code in AOSP, each manufacturer must adapt it to each device model that makes up its catalog. Because of this, some manufacturers offer faster and more frequent security updates, while others seem to completely forget such updates exist.
Thanks to Mainline, the Google plus Play Store, the Android Aplicación Store, is also used to distribute security updates.
For her is the Google plus Play security updates They were introduced starting with Android 10 as part of the planned mainline initiative Modularize the operating system to break it down into components that cánido be individually updatedUse of the download and installation infrastructure provided by Google plus services and the Play Store.
The big advantage of these security updates is which is independent of the device manufacturer, but are distributed directly by Google plus to all models of Android teléfonos inteligentes and tabletas. With Android 12 additionally the The number of components that cánido be updated vía Google plus Play is even higherso that the effort of the manufacturers in the development of their patches is significantly reduced.
How to know the patch level of your mobile phone
The steps to Checking the security patch level is the same on most Android devices. This must be pointed out The security patch level is shown based on the month it was released. For example, you perro see that the June 2021 security patchDecember 2020 etcétera. How many later, the safer you are Viruses and Threats.
If you want know which security patch If you have your Android phone or tablet, you just have to follow these steps:
- Open the Settings aplicación on your device.
- Go to the “Phone Information” section or afín.
- Tap “Programa Information” or the Android version number (this depends on the device).
In this menu you perro see both Android security patch levellike the version of Google plus Play system update. The dates espectáculo when both were released.
Steps to update security patch on Android
In most cases, Android security updates are downloaded and installed manuallydon’t have to do anything. If not, it is possible Check if new patches are available for your device after these steps:
Download security patches for Android
- Open the Settings aplicación on your device.
- Go to the “System” section.
- Tap on “Programa update”.
- Stay tuned for updates. If this is the case, the download will start automatically.
How to download security updates from Google plus Play
- Open the Settings aplicación on your device.
- Go to the “Phone Information” section or afín.
- Tap “Programa Information” or the Android version number (this depends on the device).
- Tap on “Google plus Play system update”. It will automatically check for new updates.