Tag: Security

Like clockwork, Google has released the July Android Security updates for the platform, with both OTA and full factory images now available.  Interestingly, Google has split this month’s update into two different patches.  The first patch, dated July 1, is the most critical and broad reaching.  It includes two critical patches and 11 high priority patches for Android.  In all there are 22 fixes in this patch.  The second patch, dated July 5, contains several more fixes but is more specific to drivers and specific devices.  This patch has 7 critical patches and 19 high priority patches.  So why split them up?  Google is trying to get manufactures to update their devices faster and with the first patch being more broad its fixes, the hope is manufactures will get these updates out faster.  This will in turn give them time to do testing of the second patch (which may or may not be applicable to their devices anyway) for distribution as a separate patch or even a roll up into August.

Good news this morning for those of you who have a Galaxy S6 or S6 Edge on T-Mobile.  The carrier has released the June security update in an OTA update with some other fixes and improvements this morning.  The updated builds are G920TUVU4EPF1 for the S6 while the S6 Edge new build is G925TUVU3EPD1.  For either device, the update weighs in at about 200MB and you will have to reboot your phone after you download and install the update.

In a move that makes all kinds of sense, Evernote has moved the premium feature of being able to lock your note with a passcode to their free tier.  This means every users of the service can lock their notes from prying eyes.  This is great to see as it corrects something I personally never liked about Evernote:  Security should not be a premium option.  It should be there by default.

I have been a user of the service since 2011 and a premium user of the service (for other reasons) so the ability to associate a PIN with the app has always been there for me.  It prevents anyone from picking up your phone, opening the app, and reading your notes.  It is simple yes but does the job.  In my mind, Evernote has corrected a wrong with this change.

Google has made a small but nice improvement to their authorization process of account access for those with 2-factor authentication enabled.  Previously, in order to approve a device accessing your account, you had to either get a text message to your phone or use the Google Authenticator app.  Now you can get a simple, full screen notification on your Android phone to approve access to your account.  It’s simple and effective and far faster than waiting on that text or opening the Authenticator app.

It is the first of the month which means it is time for the monthly Android Security Bulletin to be released along with updated images for Nexus devices.  The June update is now on the Android Developer site in the factory images while OTA updates to Nexus devices will begin in short order.  Google has also released the full bulletin for the update, outlining all of the things that were addressed in the update.  In all there were 21 security updates in the release, six of which were considered critical in nature.  Google points out in the bulletin that no known exploitation of the issues are known but they are addressing them anyway to keep users safe and secure.

The Chromium team has released Chrome build 51 for Windows and Mac, updating the browser with a significant number of bug fixes and security improvements.  The updated build is version 51.0.2704.63 and it is available now for those of you who have the browser installed.  To force the update, go to Menu>Settings>About and the browser will go and look for the update, download it and after you restart your the browser, will apply it.  Do note Linux users, this update is not available to you just yet.  The release notice from the Chromium team indicates that the Linux build will be coming out shortly.