Two federal agencies have kicked off an investigation to discover the decision making process cellular carriers and phone manufacturers use when each decides to implement a security update on their network or device.The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) wrote letters to six mobile phone carriers and eight phone manufacturers to gain a better understanding of not only how mobile security works, but to determine the process these companies use when reviewing and releasing security updates.Some of the other information requested included:The companies have 45 days to comply with the order.
- Detailed data on the specific mobile devices they have offered for sale to consumers since August 2013;
- The vulnerabilities that have affected those devices; and
- Whether and when the company patched such vulnerabilities.
