"Google requires two-year security updates for smartphones."

Posted by Maryam Yamin on October 25th, 2018

 According to The English News, Google would have agreed in contracts with a number of smartphone manufacturers to provide their devices with security updates for two years.

In the first year after the phone is on the market, Google would require at least four security updates, writes The Verge on the basis of an approved contract for the EU market.

Upgrades would also be required in the following year but without an explicit minimum.

Google is the administrator of the Android operating system, which is used by almost all smartphone makers.

The company releases security updates every month that fix vulnerabilities that could otherwise be exploited. However, it is up to the manufacturers to update the software, something that does not always happen.

Google's contractual requirement would apply to smartphones that came on the market after 31 January 2018 and are used by at least 100,000 people. It is unclear which manufacturers have specifically entered into this contract with Google.