BlackBerry Priv and Android Security

Posted on November 14, 2015 by

The foremost Android flavored handset from BlackBerry will be getting to the hands of Smartphone users with the BlackBerry Priv shipping soon. Quite a good number of these people have waited for so long, hoping for a day when they could use Android on hardware manufactured by BlackBerry.

Android faces 98 percent of the malware attacks on mobile devices, as revealed by BlackBerry in a promotional video launched for BBS12, being the most popular mobile OS in the world. That makes it very important for Priv users to understand how BlackBerry plans to handle Android security patches.

Monthly security updates from Google will punctually sent out OTA to Priv buyers that bought their device from BlackBerry, as pointed out in the BlackBerry blog. In view of this, some sellers including carriers have accepted to work on getting immediate approval for sending out these OTA updates to Priv owners.

There are some issues about Android that cannot just be suspended for long to receive attention or get response. BlackBerry will perform a hotfix, where the code that will correct a certain problem will be sent to Priv owners, in an effort to solve these problems. This is intended for tremendously staid problems that need a rapid reply.

However, the testing carried out before the hotfix is sent out is perfunctory, giving room for a quick end to the issue, due to the fact that the code being sent is very limited. BlackBerry declares that it will have the capability to straightforwardly patch all Priv variants.

BlackBerry will allow IT departments to take back the control over software updates it has on PCs, but lost on mobile devices, when it comes to the issue of Enterprise managed updates. Control of security patches in the enterprise will be taken over by the IT crew, with management of OTA updates, and BlackBerry Enterprise Server.

It sounds as if BlackBerry has given this much thought, as it works to broaden the defense of Priv users further than the refuge of the device itself. A good number of remarkable expansions will come from the U.S. carriers with a standing of not being so judicious with their Android updates.