Android updates are still not perfect, but we’re seeing things improve year over year. Samsung has accumulated a stellar update track record as of late and is now among the best in the business when it comes to rolling out prompt Android updates. Now, the company is rolling out the August 2021 security update to its Samsung Galaxy lineup. Here’s the full list.
Samsung August 2021 security update – what’s new
Samsung actually started the rollout of its August 2021 security update early on July 27, almost a full week before the first Monday of July when Google usually releases the list of core security issues that this patch fixes. For Galaxy owners, it’s a major bonus to be among the first Android phones to start receiving software fixes and one of the biggest reasons to choose a Samsung phone period.
The update notes include 38 fixes from Google’s regular Android Security Bulletin for August 2021, with a number of high level or critical fixes that range from severe to moderate. Luckily none of those issues applies directly to Samsung hardware. However, the patches ensure protection against a vulnerability related to IV (Initialization Vectors) and UAF (Use After Free). The latter allowed for the exploitation of free memory in the conn_gadget driver.
At this stage, no new features are being added with this patch. That might be especially disappointing given that previous updates have included added camera options and wider software tweaks for select Galaxy hardware. Alas, no such luck this time around.
Devices with Samsung August 2021 security update
Which Samsung devices are getting the August 2021 security update? The list from Samsung is, pretty light right now but will expand quickly. As of July 30, Samsung is already rolling out monthly patches to four devices — which is still impressive given we’re early into a new month.
This list will include a note on where the update first debuted and if it is also available in the United States. As usual, the latest additions will be marked in bold.
Galaxy S Series
As the lead flagship series for Samsung and among the biggest global sellers, it should come as no surprise that devices such as the Galaxy S21 series would be among the first to get the August 2021 security update. Galaxy S21 units in Chinese markets were first to see the OTA update with a further rollout to Exynos-powered global units just a few days later on August 4 starting with Germany follow by a first foray into the US with Xfinity-locked devices but has now seeded to unlocked models as of August 11. The updates carry slightly different firmware build numbers, as the Chinese variant does come without GMS or Play Store access.
The fantastic budget flagship Galaxy S20 FE was next up in the Galaxy S series to get updated with the August 2021 security patch. Rolling out in a number of European nations, the patch is rolling out for the 4G-only Exynos models and now the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 versions of the Galaxy S20 FE from August 11 with a wider rollout in the US on T-Mobile from August 31. Hard to be considered a flagship device, the Galaxy S9 received the August 2021 security patch with a rollout in Europe as part of the quarterly update schedule but for those in the US on T-Mobile, the update started appearing from August 14.
Samsung’s affordable flagship Galaxy S10 Lite began seeing the latest security patch from August 6, with the rollout beginning in Spain for the late-2019 device. Frustratingly for those with the Galaxy S10e, S10, and S10+ the August 2021 security patch has started rolling out from August 23 to Exynos devices. The last Galaxy S series device to come with a 3.5mm headphone port and the only S-series smartphone to include a dual punch hole is still a great device.
In the US, the rollout of the August patch for the Galaxy S10 series has been fairly slow thus far but for those with carrier-locked versions of the previous generation can grab the OTA update on Xfinity Mobile and Comcast in the region as of September 1.
The only 5G version of the Galaxy S10 series is the aptly named Galaxy S10 5G, which comes with the superfast network connectivity as standard courtesy of the X50 modem — as it’s packed the 4G-only Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chip. The device started seeing the latest security patch in the United States first on T-Mobile starting August 27.
For those with the Galaxy S20, the rollout first started in the United States for unlocked devices, with a further expansion for those with Exynos models from August 11. This follows a common trend with International models being prioritized over the US ahead of a wider rollout.
- Galaxy S9 — G96xFXXUGFUG4/G960USQS9FUG2 (Released first in Europe)
- US: Available on T-Mobile
- Galaxy S9+ — G965USQS9FUG2 (Released first in Europe)
- US: Available on T-Mobile
- Galaxy S10e — G97xFXXUCFUH3 / G97xUSQU6GUH4 (Released first in Switzerland)
- US: Available on Comact/Xfinity Mobile
- Galaxy S10 — G97xFXXUCFUH3 / G97xUSQU6GUH4 (Released first in Switzerland)
- US: Available on Comact/Xfinity Mobile
- Galaxy S10+ — G97xFXXUCFUH3 / G97xUSQU6GUH4 (Released first in Switzerland)
- US: Available on Comact/Xfinity Mobile
- Galaxy S10 5G — G977TUVS7FUG6 (Relased first in the United States)
- US: Available on T-Mobile
- Galaxy S10 Lite — G770FXXS5EUG5 (Released first in Spain)
- Galaxy S20 FE — G780FXXU5CUG6 (Released first in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Slovakia, and Switzerland)
- Galaxy S20 FE 5G — G781BXXU4CUH1 (Relased first in Europe)
- Galaxy S20 — G98xFXXU9DUH2 / G986U1UEU2DUH1 (Released first in the US, globally from Aug 11)
- US: Available for unlocked models / T-Mobile
- Galaxy S21 — G99x0ZCU2AUGE/G99xBXXU3AUGM / G99xUSQU4AUGE / G99XU1UEU4AUGE (Released first in China, Germany from Aug 4)
- US: Available on Xfinity/unlocked
Galaxy Note series
2021 will, unfortunately, go down as a year to forget for hardcore Samsung Galaxy Note fans. The Korean firm looks set to end the series and focus solely on the Fold and Galaxy S lines moving forward. Luckily, if you do own an older Note series handset, the August 2021 security patch is beginning to rollout already.
The now ancient Galaxy Note 8 was updated on August 6 in the UK and Spain just shortly after those in the United States began seeing the August update for their late-2020 Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra flagship devices. Not to leave out international owners – read Exynos devices – Samsung started seeding the August patch for the Note 20 series across the globe from August 9. This does have a slightly different build number to help differentiate.
9to5Google reader Bill confirmed that the August patch is now rolling out for US Galaxy Note 9 devices starting with AT&T locked models. The rollout started for Exynos Galaxy Note 9 units over a week later starting August 18 in Germany. This could actually be the last regular monthly patch for the former flagship, which is likely to only see quarterly updates for the foreseeable future. One of the follow-up devices, the Note 10 Lite began receiving the latest security patch from August 13. A limited rollout in Brazil has begun but a wider rollout is expected over the coming days.
A notable absentee in recent weeks has been the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 and Note 10+, the previous generation Note devices are now receiving the latest August security patch along with the One UI 3.1.1 update — which includes a number of new tweaks and features.
- Galaxy Note 8 — N950FXXSGDUG6 (Released first in the UK)
- Galaxy Note 9 — N960USQS9FUG2/N960FXXS9FUH1 (Released first in the United States)
- Galaxy Note 10 Lite — N770FXXS8EUG3 (Released first in Brazil)
- Galaxy Note 10 — N97xUSQU7FUH3 (Released first in the US)
- US: Available on Sprint and T-Mobile
- Galaxy Note 10+ — N97xUSQU7FUH3 (Released first in the US)
- US: Available on Sprint and T-Mobile
- Galaxy Note 20 — N98xU1UES2DUG1/N98xFXXS3DUG9 (Released first in the US, Globally from Aug 9)
- US: Available for Unlocked devices
Galaxy Foldables
Despite the imminent release of yet more flagship foldable and “flip” handsets, the August 2021 security patch was seeded to the Galaxy Fold 5G (SM-F907B) ahead of any other Fold-branded devices. The update first arrived on UK units, with a wider rollout started for the original 4G-only Galaxy Fold (SM-F900F) starting in France just a few days later. Fold fans and owners in the United States can rest easy knowing that the first-generation foldable is now eligible to get the update on several carriers including X-Finity and T-Mobile from August 18.
The 4G-capable Galaxy Z Flip (SM-F700F) started to receive the latest patch on August 5. After a short wait, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 and, therefore, 5G capable Galaxy Z Flip 5G started receiving the latest security patch from August 9. It had a wide rollout across vast portions of Europe including the UK, France, Germany, the Baltics, plus many more.
- Galaxy Fold — F900FXXS5EUG1/F900U1UES5EUG1 (Released first in France)
- US: Available on Bluegrass, Cellular, C-Spire, Sprint, T-Mobile, and X-Finity Mobile
- Galaxy Fold 5G — F907BXXS5EUG1 (Released first in the UK)
- Galaxy Z Flip — F700FXXS7DUG1 (Released first in Asia/Europe)
- Galaxy Z Flip 5G — F707BXXS4DUG3 (Released first in Europe)
Galaxy A Series
While the Galaxy A52 might be fairly recent, it was actually the three-year-old Galaxy A8 that became just the second Samsung device to get updated with the August 2021 security patch. While we often criticize OEMs for a lack of post-release support, this is genuinely fantastic to see and an indication of the Korean firm’s dedication to devices often deemed way past the point of support by other brands.
Released alongside the Galaxy A52, the Galaxy A72 also began seeing the August update early with Russian and Ukrainian devices beginning to receive the patch as of July 30. It took a while until the 5G version was updated, with a rollout in Australia for the Galaxy A52 5G starting quite late on August 25. The immensely popular Galaxy A71 5G started to get an update on August 17 with all of the security fixes in tow with a rollout starting in the United States for those on Sprint and T-Mobile starting August 23. Those with last years Galaxy A51 will be pleased to hear that the latest patch began rolling out from August 27 in Brazil.
Affordable Android devices are a huge part of the Samsung hardware collection, the Galaxy A32 is one such cheap smartphone that is, oddly, powered by a MediaTek processor rather than Samsung’s own silicon. This budget handset started seeing the August 2021 security patch in Russian markets beginning August 7 and the Galaxy A32 5G — powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 720 5G chip — is now also getting updated as of August 23.
The Galaxy A31 is yet another popular low-end A-series smartphone, but that doesn’t mean it is left out of the update schedule. The patch began rolling out in South American markets from August 23, with a wider rollout expected. Of the 30-series, the Galaxy A30s is the last to join the update party after beginning to arrive on devices in Brazil from August 26.
While no longer the top tier A-series device, the Galaxy A90 5G started seeing the August security patch from August 12. Given that the previous update was way back in May 2021, this is an important update to the devices. It was spotted rolling out in South Korea, Australia, and the United Kingdom — likely ahead of a wider rollout soon. A couple of years old but not forgotten, the affordable Galaxy A50s was updated with the very latest patch from August 17. From August 20, the precursor to the A50s was also updated with the very latest patch, which started to arrive in South American markets first ahead of a wider rollout.
After getting updated to Android 11 with One UI 3.1, the ultra-affordable Galaxy A10 is also on the receiving end of the August patch. The update began rolling out in Russia from August 18, but only appears to be available for devices that have already updated to the latest OS version. That means if you’re running Android 10, it isn’t available, unfortunately. Android 11 is also now rolling out for the Samsung Galaxy A20 in the United States complete with One UI 3.1 and all the associated tweaks and tuning. Those with the very affordable device will also be pleased to hear that it comes with the August 2021 security patch.
We all know the Galaxy A-series is one of the biggest growing areas for Samsung. Among the most affordable is the Galaxy A02s, which is also not left out in the cold with regard to updates having started seeing the latest patch from August 24 in South America — starting with Uruguay.
- Galaxy A02s — A025MUBU2BUH5 (Released first in Uruguay)
- Galaxy A8 (2018) — A530FXXSLCUH1 (Released first in Russia)
- Galaxy A10 — A105FPUU6CUH3 (Released first in Russia)
- Galaxy A20 — A205U1UEU9CUH3 (Released first in US)
- US: Available for Unlocked devices
- Galaxy A30s — A307GTVJS4CUH1 (Released first in South America)
- Galaxy A31 — A315GDXU1CUG5 (Relased first in South America)
- Galaxy A32 — A325FXXU1AUH1 (Released first in Russia)
- Galaxy A32 5G — A326BXXU3AUH4 (Released first in Malaysia)
- Galaxy A50 — A505GUBS9CUH1 (Released first in South America)
- Galaxy A50s — A507FNXXU5DUG4 (Released first in Asia)
- Galaxy A51 — A515FXXU5EUG7 (Released first in Brazil)
- Galaxy A52 — A525FXXU3AUG4 (Released first in Germany)
- Galaxy A52 5G — A526BXXS1AUH2 (Released first in Australia)
- Galaxy A71 5G — A715FXXU6BUH1/A716USQU5DUG1 (Released first in Poland)
- US: Available on Sprint and T-Mobile
- Galaxy A72 — A725FXXU3AUG2 (Released first in Russa/Ukraine)
- Galaxy A90 5G — A908NKSU3DUG3 (Released first in South Korea/Australia/UK)
Galaxy Tab Series
Arguably the most popular Android tablet line on the market, the Galaxy Tab series of devices offer large displays and a wide variety of hardware at various points in the price spectrum if you want a second content consumption screen. Samsung is also pretty darn good at keeping the tablet line up-to-date with the latest patches — including the August 2021 security update.
The Galaxy Tab S6 was among the very first Samsung tablets to get updated, with the patch rolling out from August 11 in South Korea. We haven’t seen many tablets get updated to the most recent patch but the impressive Galaxy Tab S5e is now starting to see the August patch in certain markets. Like the Tab S6, those in Korea can get the latest patch as of August 26 with a wider rollout expected.
Samsung offers an array of affordable or lower-cost Android tablets which are sold in the A-series banner. The Galaxy Tab A and A7 are two such devices and are not exempt from regular patches and updates with the duo getting the August 2021 security patch in the US and European markets respectively. September has crept up and we have yet more Galaxy tablets getting the August patch including the rugged Tab Active 2, which is getting updated on T-Mobile and AT&T in the United States.
- Galaxy Tab A — T387TUVS2CUH1 (Released first in the United States)
- US: Available on T-Mobile
- Galaxy Tab A7 — T505XXU3BUH3 (Relesed first in Europe)
- Galaxy Tab S5e — T725NKOS2DUH2 (Released first in South Korea)
- Galaxy Tab S6 — T865XXOS4CUG1 (Released first in South Korea)
- Galaxy Tab Active 2 — T397UUESBCUG1 (Released first in the US)
- US: Available on T-Mobile, AT&T.
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