Here's something you know: Keeping your devices updated is essential for their optimal performance and for safeguarding your important business data from potential threats.
Here's something you may not know: Research indicates that an incredible nearly 60% of data breaches could have been avoided with better update management, meaning that un-updated systems are mainly responsible for cyber attacks.
This impact is experienced across three areas of business operations, referred to as the 'three Ps': protection, performance, and protocol.
What are the three Ps of security updates?
- Protection: Security updates address vulnerabilities against malware, ransomware, and phishing attacks—preventing unauthorized access to sensitive business information.
- Performance: In addition to improving security, updates often lead to enhanced device stability and performance. When implemented strategically, updates can significantly benefit business operations. By minimizing the risk of system compromise, organizations can increase reliability, ensure uninterrupted access, and reduce downtime, ultimately lowering business costs.
- Protocol: Many industries have strict cybersecurity and data protection regulations (e.g. GDPR, HIPAA), keeping devices updated ensures adherence to compliance standards and avoids fines or legal consequences.
Although it can appear tricky to understand what updates are necessary and when to deploy them, it's often simply a case of staying informed and aware of developments.
Don't worry—this article will help you understand device updates and security, making them easier to implement.
What types of updates are there and what do they do?
Understanding the different types of software updates is important to effectively manage your device. To ensure that you have the latest updates for your Samsung devices, you can always visit our Security Scope Updates webpage.
Here are the three types of updates:
- Security Maintenance Releases (SMRs): These updates take care of security patches and should be deployed as soon as they are available to minimize vulnerabilities.
- Maintenance Releases (MRs): These updates improve performance improvements and bug fixes. To identify any issues during the rollout of these updates, it's advised to deploy these in stages so if there are any issues, they can be resolved without affecting your entire fleet.
- Operating System Upgrades (OS Upgrades): These updates bring significant changes to device operation and overall user experience. These updates should also be stage tested before further deployment to ensure stability.
It is also useful to sometimes combine a SMR with a MR to streamline the update process. Using tools like Knox E-FOTA can help with smoother rollouts by giving you a better understanding of each individual update.
How can businesses keep track of and plan for new updates?
To stay informed about the latest security patches and updates, you can visit the Samsung Security Bulletin webpage. You'll find monthly vulnerability disclosures, including Samsung Vulnerability Enumerations (SVEs) and Common Vulnerability Enumerations (CVEs).
You can also check the security update cadence for your devices to know how often they will receive crucial security updates.
For larger software updates, establishing the right update management cadence is essential to keep devices running smoothly with minimal downtime.
Additionally, understanding the support duration for your work devices can help you manage your assets more effectively. For example, the Galaxy S24 and later models are expected to receive up to 7 years of security and software updates from their initial global launch. This provides extended coverage that goes beyond the typical lifecycle of a work phone.
How does Samsung ensure you can achieve the three Ps of security updates?
Closely monitoring and checking your devices for available updates is a surefire way to meet the three Ps of device security updates for businesses.
At Samsung Knox, we prioritize device security by continuously identifying and developing patches. This is done through our bug bounty program, extensive testing, and collaboration with third-party OS and chipset partners.
We develop and rigorously test the firmware, collaborating with mobile carriers to ensure optimal performance. Once everything is verified, we release the firmware for devices to download and install. Our strong partnerships with chipset vendors and carriers enable us to deliver consistent software updates worldwide across hundreds of device models.
Read our next article for a more in-depth article on setting up the right update management cadence to maintain device stability and productivity.
