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Many Smartphone Owners Don't Take Steps To Secure Their Devices (pewresearch.org)
From Pew Research's new report: More than a quarter (28%) of smartphone owners say they do not use a screen lock or other security features to access their phone. And while a majority of smartphone users say they have updated their phone's apps or operating system, about 40% say they only update when it's convenient for them. Meanwhile, some users forgo updating their phones altogether: Around one-in-ten smartphone owners report they never update their phone's operating system (14%) or update the apps on their phone (10%).
Unfortunately that's down to the manufacturer and carrier, neither of which give a flying fuck after they sold you the contract. Probably take someone suing them until this changes in the UK.
Do you really blame the users for not updating? How many times have you updated an application and found the UI worse (such as filled with ads) or doesn't work as well? (I recently updated the BBC iPlayer and now find that it doesn't work as well - the only reason I updated is because the BBC app wouldn't play videos anymore - so it was a forced upgrade.)
Updating the OS can lead to slower operation, things that worked breaking (especially if you haven't updated your apps :-) ), etc..Even in the typical case, the application continues to work, the UI is somewhat better but nothing much changes.
Why take the time to update? We, as geeks, know why. But for the typical user it is often just a pain in the ass and the balance of risks is negative. Updating makes sense for most people only if something isn't actually working correctly.