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Google is trying to fight a big Android bug that can take over your phone, but it's not going to be enough

In a move that was likely ignited by the recent Stagefright Android security exploit, Google said in a blog post Wednesday that it'll roll out monthly security updates to its line of Nexus Android phones.  

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Stagefright is a hole in the Android operating system that lets malicious software install itself via a simple MMS (multimedia messaging service) message that usually contains video, pictures, or audio.

Android phone text
Flickr/Japanexperterna

Up to 950 million Android are vulnerable to this exploit, and it's not just a case of identifying a malicious MMS text and choosing not to open it. Your phone simply needs to receive the malicious text to become infected. 

That's great for those with the latest Google Nexus devices, but leaves a huge amount of devices left out in the unsecure cold. 

At the time of writing, smartphone makers like LG, HTC, Motorola, Xiaomi, and the countless number of other manufacturers that make Android devices haven't announced any plans to release periodical security patches that would protect its users from security exploits like Stagefright.

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Tech Radar spotted that Samsung will also be releasing monthly security updates for its smartphones, but according to Sprint and AT&T's websites, only some of the premium devices from Samsung will receive the patch so far. That still leaves a huge number of older Samsung phones and other phones in general exposed.

In an effort to secure a wider range of Android devices, one of Germany's main carriers, Deutsche Telekom, is disabling the auto-retrieval of MMS messages on its network entirely until the Stagefright is universally patched for all Android devices.

Due to the hugely fragmented nature of Android, that could take a very, very long time, as security fixes would need to be developed for all the different models of Android devices that are used worldwide.

When it comes to Android devices, your best bet is to get a Nexus device, as you'll get the latest updates, including important security updates, much more quickly than the majority of Android devices made by third-party manufacturers.

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