GOOGLE Chrome users have been urged not to ignore a new weekly alert that’ll soon be popping up in their browser.
The tech giant has decided it will start issuing out new security updates every week, instead of its usual fortnightly roll out.
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Google has shifted to a faster update cycle in a bid to stave off hawk-eyed hackers who might be fast enough to take advantage of a cyber flaw after it has been raised to Google – but before the company can fix it.
Security flaws with Google Chrome are typically reported by individuals or cybersecurity firms to Chromium – the open-sourced project Chrome is built on.
The issue is then raised with Google’s in-house teams to review and fix.
Security patches are then pushed to Chrome’s testing channels where they’ll be checked over before the fixes are rolled out to all users.
However, the time it takes for a fix to be tested and then officially issued to web users takes several weeks, according to GHacks.
So threat actors can monitor the situation on Chromium and be aware of new vulnerabilities and develop exploits before a fix is ready.
Google wants give fraudsters less time to do any damage, and shrink their impact on web surfers.
The weekly patches will work in a similar way to Apple’s new ‘Rapid Security Response’ updates, which aim to patch up cyber vulnerabilities faster than through conventional software updates.
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The search engine behemoth has also tabled plans to create a new notification banner, so folks will see necessary updates more easily.
For now, the weekly patches will appear in your settings, in the top right hand corner of the browser.
They will include fixes for all critical and high severity bugs that were discovered in the previous build of the browser.
The updates will also help Google cut down on its unplanned emergency updates, that busy users might not install in time.
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