Google intends to continue its support for Nexus devices and promises that the devices will unceasingly receive major updates at least for a period of two years.
It has always been known that among all Android devices, it is the Nexus that gets the first round of platform and security updates. Google plans to roll out these updates as monthly over-the-air patches; the software is also set to arrive today.
Owners of newer Nexus models should never have to wait long for the patches to come. Apart from being assured that their devices are getting major OS updates for the duration of at least two years, Nexus owners should also expect to get security fixes for the duration of either three years after the device has launched or 18 months after it has left the Google Store.
"Security has always been a major focus for Android and Google Play. Android was built from day one with security in mind," stated the official Android blog.
Security updates, Google believes, should be delivered in a timely manner and that carriers shouldn't be blocking or delaying their delivery by all means. While it may seem that a monthly update is not exactly timely in essence, it is still considered a huge improvement compared with the past system when users had no knowledge when they are getting the patch for their devices.
Beginning today, Google is rolling out security updates to a number of Nexus devices, promising to keep them protected from vulnerabilities and issues. These include the Nexus 4, Nexus 5, Nexus, 6, Nexus 7, Nexus 9, Nexus 10 and Nexus Player.
One of the things that may have prompted Google to make such a move is the recent Stagefright exploit that was revealed by Joshua Drake of Zimperium. The bug reportedly allows an attacker to send a malicious text message to phones, making the devices vulnerable to thieves who are on the hunt for personal data.
Apart from Google, several smartphone makers are also rolling out security patches for the Stagefright flaw. One of these is Alcatel, which is prepping a fix on its OneTouch Idol 3. It hopes to release the fix by Aug. 10.
Samsung, the largest maker of Android devices, had announced before it was were issuing over-the-air security updates for its devices at least once a month.
