Google just launched an update to Chrome for Android that provides the browser with a strengthened sandbox. Google says this will help ensure that malicious mobile sites remain contained and can’t impact the entire browser. It’s worth noting, though, that this enhanced sandbox will only be available to Android 4.1 Jellybean users. All Chrome for Android users (Chrome is only available for Android 4.0+), though, will profit from the additional security fixes and small feature updates in this release. In total, Google paid out $750 to developers who found security issues.
As Google notes, the Chrome sandbox “is made possible by the innovative multi-process architecture in Chrome for Android, in conjunction with Android’s User ID (UID) isolation technology.”
Besides these security fixes, this update also makes a few small changes to how YouTube videos work in Chrome. YouTube video controls, Google says, now work in full-screen mode, and video now automatically continues playing after a screen lock/unlock. Google also says that third-party input methods (think SwiftKey or Swype) will now work better with Chrome.
While the stronger sandbox is limited to Jellybean, all of the other fixes and feature updates will be available for all Android 4.0+ users.