The Canadian company takes pride in being the first to offer Google’s monthly Android security updates

Mar 13, 2016 12:38 GMT  ·  By

Since Google announced plans to release monthly security Android updates for all compatible Nexus devices, many handset manufacturers confirmed they will offer these updates as well.

Naturally, not all Android smartphones will receive these updates, which basically leaves them open to exploits and hacks.

Samsung, LG, Xiaomi and other handset makers already released some of Google’s Android security patches, which are launched at the beginning of each month.

As soon as Google identifies exploits or critical security issues, they quickly patch them up and offer OEMs a list of problems that have been found in Android during the previous month. Some of these issues are identified by third-parties and offered to Google so that they can be fixed in time for the monthly release.

It takes weeks, months, for other OEMs to offer these updates

Even though Google provides each OEM with information about these issues, updates are released very slow for many smartphones.

But that’s not BlackBerry’s case, as the Canadian company is always among the first, along with Google, to provide monthly Android security updates to its smartphone, PRIV.

The PRIV has always been the first to receive Android security patches each month since Google started this program. To highlight this achievement, BlackBerry released a table where it shows how fact it’s been able to deliver updates in comparison with the competition.

Keep in mind that green indicates no delay between public disclosure and patch availability; yellow indicates patch available within a week of exposure; red indicates patch available after more than a week (or not at all).

Also, according to BlackBerry, “for each OEM, we reference their best-case scenario, i.e. the device receiving the earliest security patch (for OEMs with large device portfolios, patch timing is inconsistent).”

Although we don’t know how many people have bought the BlackBerry PRIV, it’s nice to see the Canadian company continues to offer top-notch services to its customers.

Android security update timeline
Android security update timeline

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BlackBerry PRIV
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