Google is rolling out a new feature in Google Play Services update 25.14, set to release next week, that automatically reboots smartphones after three days of inactivity (no screen unlock). This functionality, inspired by the GrapheneOS Android platform, aims to enhance security by resetting decrypted user data sections to their original, encrypted state. After a reboot, user data remains encrypted until the owner unlocks the device with a password.
This helps protect against memory analysis attacks and vulnerabilities that could bypass screen locks if the device is lost or stolen. Android will have a corresponding setting to allow users to enable or disable this feature.
End of Support for Android 12
Additionally, Google has announced the end of security patches for Android 12, which was released in 2021. The latest vulnerability fixes, detailed in the April report, now only cover Android 13, 14, and 15.
Higher System Requirements for Android 15
With Android 15, Google is raising the bar for hardware requirements. Devices must now have at least 32 GB of flash storage, up from the previous minimum of 16 GB, with 75% allocated to the data partition.
Also, now smartphones must support the Vulkan 1.3 graphics API to qualify for Android 15 certification. Devices failing to meet these standards won’t be eligible for Google certification. This will prevent older or less capable hardware from running the latest version of Android.
The announcement is here.
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