A few months back Google launched its much-awaited Android version, Android 10 or Android Q. Just like all the previous versions, Android 10 has also arrived with some new features and expectations.
Along with some new functions and performance fixes, Google has also introduced some new security features and fixes. But that’s not enough as recently Google has announced that Android 10 has 193 security vulnerabilities which need to get fixed.
So that is what the topic is about today. We will be having a discussion about what are these security and what steps Google is taking in order to solve this issue.
So what kind of security vulnerabilities are we talking about?
Some days ago Google has published the Android 10 security notes on Android Open Source Project. In that note Google has mentioned that there are 193 Android security vulnerabilities in Android 10.
Some of these vulnerabilities include,
- Elevation of Privilege.
- Remote code execution
- Information disclosure
- Denial of service categories
Among these, the android media framework has 68 vulnerabilities and the android system has 97.
Don’t get upset from now on because apart from these 193 vulnerabilities there are also some new and exciting that Google has introduced with Android 10.
Some of them are-
- New Navigation gestures.
- Native dark mode support
- All new theming option
- Availability of Live caption overall videos on the device
- App permissions are getting a brand new fix
- You can see a new share menu
- Can be used in Foldable Phones
What are the new Android 10 security features?
Google first started to roll-out its latest Android version that is Android 10 on their mobile devices Google Pixel 3. Along with numerous new features, there are also a number of tools that will help you to improve your privacy and security control.
There are three such features that Google has introduced with its operating system update which has surprised the critics and the users too.
Android 10 will give control over location access
This new feature of Android 10 will give you total control over your location privacy. That means in terms of location privacy you are in the driving seat and everything is in your hand.
Now you can choose which application you want to give your location access to( even if you are not using that application and it is running in the background. You will also receive reminders and notifications from the app when they will track your location even when you are not actively using that.
So you can decide whether to give permission or not for your location access.
Updates will be sent from Google Play
In the recent Android 10 version Google allows the user to download the update directly from the play store. It will be like updating an app from google store.
Updating your operating system via the play store will help you to keep your system regularly updated. As security fixe updates will be sent to you directly and as a result, you do not have to wait for a major update to happen.
Android 10 has a new privacy section
With this new update, Google Android 10 is having a separate privacy section. This section is included under the setting option. One of the main motives behind this step is that now you can control the usability of your data.
This feature will allow you to control important functions like Web and App activity and Ad settings so that you feel comfortable with what you share.
What are the Android Security Issues?
Android is the most used mobile operating system. There are over 2.6 billion active users of Android. Still it has some issues and bugs regarding its security and privacy policies.
Some of them are:
Application-based threats
The attacks faced by different instant messaging or music apps have indicated how the cyber threats scenario has changed from computer to mobile devices.
Any application which involves the exchange of links can be a serious threat to the user. Through these links, hackers can gather your personal credentials and your information can get vulnerable to them.
Moreover, threats like viruses or Trojans can be hidden in a decent looking app and can harm you if you put some personal information on that platform.
Cryptojacking
Chances of trapping in a scheme of cryptojacking via a mobile device are less as mobile devices have less computing power than actual desktops.
But we still use browsers in mobiles right?
Yes, and that is why you can be the target of crypto hackers. As per the name implies hackers track your webpages and mine cryptocurrency in the background in the background while you are online from your browser.
Man in the Middle
If you like to keep yourself online all the time and use public wifi on the go then you can be a victim of man in the middle attack (MITM). This happens when a hacker secretly intervenes in your connection between your device and the open sever.
This results in a security compromisation and you may face some privacy issues. MITM is the most common attack faced by most of the mobile users.
Conclusion
So from the above blog, we can conclude that though Google has released its latest operating system that is Android 10, still there some major security issue remains which makes the operating system vulnerable.
Let’s hope that Google will solve these issues as per to give a complete satisfying experience to their users. But we can also see that with the new Android 10, Google has also introduced some major features which was much needed in the previous versions.
