After going live for a couple of Galaxy flagships and FE/Lite phones, the September 2021 security patch is now widening its reach to include the upper mid-range segment, or more specifically, the Galaxy A8 (2018).
This is quite an unexpected release, considering that the enterprise Galaxy A8 (2018) is technically supposed to follow a quarterly security update schedule, while the non-enterprise model should be getting security patches every six months. But here we are, talking about the September security patch mere weeks after the June and August 2021 updates went live for the Galaxy A8 (2018). This could mean that the September 2021 security patch addresses critical issues, though we won't know for sure until Samsung reveals the changelog.
The new firmware is rolling out in South America, or at least in Colombia, but availability should soon expand to other markets. The update carries firmware version A530FXXSLCUH5, which indicates that the Galaxy A8 (2018) isn't getting any new features and enhancements through this new update, aside from the improved level of security.
If you're using the Galaxy A8 (2018) with model number SM-A530F, you can verify if the Security 2021 security update is available for you by opening the Settings app and navigating to Software update. And as usual, you can also acquire Samsung updates from our firmware database for free.
SamsungGalaxy A8 2018