Samsung's October security patch release date due soon; technical details revealed

Samsung's October 2016 Security Bulletin will roll out anytime soon. Its details has been revealed.Reuters/Kim Hong-Ji

Samsung is about to start releasing its October security update for its mobile phones. The company has also unveiled the contents of its soon-to-be-released patch.

The South Korean tech giant has recently released the details of its October patch which will arrive on its major flagship smartphones. The October patch includes the official Android security bulletin for the month along with Samsung's own security patches. A few bug fixes will also be included in the said update.

Samsung said in its official statement: "Along with Google patches, Samsung Mobile provides 7 Samsung Vulnerabilities and Exposures (SVE) items described below, in order to improve our customer's confidence on security of Samsung Mobile devices."

The patch includes SVE-2016-6560 that fixes the system crash that is caused by the Qjpeg decode function. This is brought about by processing a distorted image that comes from 3rd party applications. The company modified the system memory allocation. The affected versions include L (5.0/5.1) and M (6.0).

A fix is also included, SVE-2016-701, for devices that use the Exynos AP chipset and experience Kernel Crash via fb0 (DECON). This is said to be caused by a "malicious graphic user."

There are also 68 Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE), many of which came from Google. A possible security weakness is also patched for the matching algorithm of the Galaxy Note 7's iris scanner, according to a report by SamMobile.

The company also noted that several details of its security patch remain hidden to avoid exploits from hackers. This is not only for Samsung devices but for the security of the whole Android community since several components of the patch are for the core Android OS. Hackers could still strike before the patch reaches its intended recipients, and they could also use the information to attack older devices.

Technical details of the Android Security Bulletin for October is also available for those who wants to know more.