The new year has arrived, and with it, a new month. That means that we’re also looking forward to a new Android security patch, and like clockwork, Google is delivering at the beginning of January, just a month after it launched theDecember Feature Dropfor Pixel phones. The company has released itsJanuary security bulletin, going over all the bugs and security loopholes it fixed for allthe best Android phonesout there.
In exciting news for Pixel users,Google today announcedthat its January 2024 security update has begun rolling out to supported phones. Eligible devices start with the Pixel 5a (5G) and go all the way up to the Pixel 8 Pro, including the Pixel Fold and Pixel Tablet along the way. In addition to security patches, Google lists a few fixes that are going live with this build, most notably one that resolves a problem with the Camera app crashing:
The January 2024 update includes bug fixes and improvements for Pixel users – see below for details.
User Interface
As is normally the case, this month’s Android Security Bulletin is split into two levels: one dated January 1 that deals with vulnerabilities in Android on the whole, and another dated January 5 that patches vendor-specific flaws. The January 1 set is free of any critical-severity Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs), instead only mentioning ten high-severity CVEs that were closed, as well as an issue with media codecs that is being patched via Google Play system updates. The January 5 patches close a total of 49 CVEs, including three critical-severity vulnerabilities in Qualcomm closed-source components (CVE-2023-21651, CVE-2023-33025, and CVE-2023-33036).
While Samsung and Pixel phones are usually among the first to receive the update, Google has given up on its fixed update schedule with the launch of the Pixel 8 and 8 Pro. Instead, the company now says that it releases new monthly and quarterly updates once they are ready, without trying to hit its old first-Monday-of-the-month schedule.
With this in mind, it likely still won’t take too long for the update to roll out to Pixel phones. After all, Google needs to keep its devices as secure as possible. Other phone manufacturers will make the update available according to their own update schedules. Some only provide bi-monthly updates or an even slower cadence. For example, Samsung updates older phones less frequently than newer ones, so some of its devices are only in for quarterly updates anymore.
