BlackBerry claims to be the first to deliver Android security patches compared to other OEMs

Soon after the release of its PRIV late last year, BlackBerry had announced an aggressive patching strategy and plan that they hoped would put PRIV at the forefront of security hygiene across all mobile devices. Now, BlackBerry has announced in its blog that it is delivering on its patching commitment, by drawing up a comparison that shows how the world’s Android OEMs have performed in their patching programs as compared with BlackBerry.

Google releases Android security bulletins – a list of vulnerabilities – on a monthly basis, and the timely release of patches for these vulnerabilities is needed to reduce the risk of their exploitation. On the table that BlackBerry has drawn up, each cell shows how many days elapsed between Google’s public disclosure of the monthly vulnerability list and the availability of a corresponding OEM patch to address the list. This number represents a time window in which users and enterprises are exposed to exploitation by attackers, who have been handed a menu of juicy vulnerabilities, some of them critical – such as StageFright – on which to feast.

“BlackBerry is the first OEM to deliver patches in line with Google’s public disclosure, closing the window of vulnerability exposure to customers. Other mobile device vendors can take weeks, months or even years to deliver security patches, leaving you and your business at risk. BlackBerry’s steadfast commitment to timely security updates is just one of the many reasons why BlackBerry continues to be the undisputed leader in mobile privacy and security,” says BlackBerry Chief Security Officer David Kleidermacher in the blog.