Google warns of RECORD hacks in the last year – update your devices NOW

EXPERTS have foiled a record number of serious security issues used by hackers in the last year.

Google said bug hunters reported 58 in total for 2021, which includes the powerful cyber weapon used to snoop on Boris Johnson’s computer network.

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The shocking figure is the highest ever since the tech firm began a scheme to stamp out hackers in 2014.

It breaks the previous record set in 2015 by more than double.

Google warned that many of the so-called “zero-day exploits” found in the wild use similar techniques seen before.

The undesirable list includes five against iPhone’s iOS, seven affecting Android and 14 linked to Chrome’s systems.

“With two exceptions out of the 58, everything we saw was pretty ‘meh’ or standard,” Google Project Zero’s Maddie Stone said.

“As an industry we’re not making zero-day hard.

“Attackers are having success using vulnerabilities similar to what we’ve seen previously and in components that have previously been discussed as attack surfaces.

“The goal is to force attackers to start from scratch each time we detect one of their exploits.”

The good news is, Google believes the rise is due to better detection and disclosure by experts, as opposed to more hacks being made.

But the revelation shows how important it is to keep devices up-to-date.

If you haven’t already, make sure your phone, laptop and apps are all running the latest version.

Otherwise, hackers can carry on exploiting any bugs that have been discovered and fixed.

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