FTC Report Provides Recommendations To Businesses Providing Mobile And Connected Services On Security Updates

On February 28, 2018, the FTC released a report summarizing the results of its investigation into improving mobile device security, particularly in regard to releasing security updates (i.e., patches) for devices in active use (the report).¹

In May 2016, the FTC issued formal requests for information to eight leading companies in the mobile device industry. In surveying the companies' responses and known challenges facing the industry, the report found that mobile devices frequently operate with significant vulnerabilities for extended periods of time either because the device manufacturers or service carriers do not issue a security update or because users do not provide approval to install the updates when made available.² In addition, the report also incorporates unpublished findings from a parallel investigation conducted by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).³ The FTC's report aims its recommendations primarily at manufacturers and carriers, and seeks to