Google 'fixes Android security breach'

Google says it has fixed a security flaw in its Android operating system for smartphones.

A hole, discovered by researchers in Germany, can let hackers gain access to users' personal information. It affects about 97 per cent of Android users. Google says a fix in place for the calendar and contacts applications in the most recent versions of Androids.

ZDNet reports that Google has plugged the hole, which could have allowed someone to gain access to calendar and contact data on an unencrypted Wi-Fi network on the smartphone.

"We're starting to roll out a fix which addresses a potential security flaw that could, under certain circumstances, allow a third-party access to data available in Calendar and Contacts," a Google spokesman said in a statement on Wednesday. "This fix requires no action from users and will roll out globally over the next few days."

ZDNet reports that the fix will force all Android devices to connect to Google Calendar and Contacts servers over https (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure) so that 'snoopers' on an unprotected wireless network won't be able to grab authentication tokens to validate devices.

The latest release of Android, 2.3.4 for smartphones and 3.0 for tablets, did not have the issue, reports ZDNet.

Google has not confirmed if the problem affects Picasa Web Albums, too.