Why you should think about changing your old Android phone as soon as possible

“We can’t buy everyone a new cell phone,” says certificate maker Let’s Encrypt.

As of September 1, 2021, approximately 30 percent of Internet web pages They will not open on smartphones using older versions of Android, reports androidpolice.com, a page dedicated to news related to this operating system.

These pages are located in the domains of Let’s Encrypt, one of the leading certification authorities in the world associated with Mozilla. When the group was created in 2015, its certificate was introduced in all browsers and operating systems. All certificates to date have an association with the certification authority IdenTrust, whose DST Root X3 certificate is reliable for most platforms, such as Windows, Firefox, macOS, Android, iOS, and Linux.

“Without IdenTrust, Let’s Encrypt would never have existed and we are grateful for our cooperation. In the meantime, we have created our own root certificate (ISRG Root X1) and trusted it from major software platforms,” ​​said Jacob Hoffman-Andrews. , lead developer of Let’s Encrypt.

The September 1, 2021, the agreement between IdenTrust and Let’s Encrypt expires, which does not plan to sign another agreement. “Some software hasn’t been renewed since 2016 … and they don’t trust our ISRG Root X1 root certificate. Especially Android versions older than 7.1.1. This means those older Android versions will no longer trust issued certificates. from Let’s Encrypt, ”Hoffman-Andrews said.

The company claims that Android has a problem with OS updates, so many phones are using older systems. The 33.8% of the world’s devices will experience certificate errors when users visit pages that have the Let’s Encrypt certificate. The company recognizes that people who can’t buy a new smartphone every four years will be the hardest hit by the update problem.

The company recommends installing the Firefox Mobile browser which has its own list of trusted certificates, unlike other browsers that use operating system certificates. “We can’t buy everyone a new cell phone,” Hoffman-Andrews said.