Samsung Fixes Exynos Security Hole In Latest Galaxy S III Software Update
IF you're a Galaxy S III user, then we hope you heard about the Exynos 4 security hole that was discovered a few weeks back. While this flaw allows users to root their device with a single click, it also could potentially let malicious apps take full control of those devices, as it grants access to all of the phone's physical memory. So, there was a plus side, but the negatives to this security issue far outweighed that little perk.
Obviously, we can't have a slew of Galaxy S III users roaming around out there with very vulnerable devices, so Samsung got to work on a fix for the issue shortly after finding out about it. Today the company has started delivering a software update that kills the problem, SamMobile reports, though at the moment it seems this update is only available to consumers in the United Kingdom. We imagine this update will follow for other regions shortly, so in the meantime, keep an eye on the apps you download if you're living outside of the UK (but you should be doing that anyway).
Of course, there are plenty of other devices out there that are using an Exynos processor and are still at risk, so we'll be waiting for updates to those devices for at least a little while longer. The software update being pushed out today also apparently fixes the sudden death issue we heard about back at the end of December. This issue sees the mainboard failing entirely, which means the phone is more or less dead after that happens, so it's good that Samsung was able to get a fix out so quickly.
Keep in mind that Samsung hasn't confirmed whether or not the sudden death issue is being fixed with this patch, but we know that the Exynos kernel issue is going the way of the Dodo, at least as far as the Galaxy S III is concerned. Other than these two major fixes, there are also a handful of minor patches as well. Galaxy S III living in the UK can nab the update now from Samsung Kies or check for the OTA update from their phone to initiate the download.
[via Android Community]