The December 2021 security patch promised to fix a lot of issues plaguing the Google Pixel 6 and 6 Pro while also adding several new features. The update's rollout officially started a bit later than usual for the phones, but it never made it to most owners. Eventually, it turned out that Google "paused" the rollout due to call drops and disconnection issues, though it never bothered to pull the image files from its developer website. Now, following the release of the January 2022 update, the company has removed all download links and mentions of the faulty security patch for the Pixel 6 series (via 9to5Google).

If you head over to Google's factory image and OTA image pages for the Pixels, you'll find the latest build available to download for the Pixel 6 series contains the November 2021 patch. This is true for all variants of the build, including ones meant for Verizon, AT&T, Google Fi, and the EU. Previously, since the images were available on Google's developer website, it was possible for Pixel 6 owners to manually download and install the buggy update on their phone in case they decided to take matters into their own hands. Now that the images have been removed, this will no longer be possible.

As for the January 2022 security patch, that's only available for the Pixel 3a series through the Pixel 5a, with the new Pixel phones slated to receive the update later this month.

Ideally, Google should have pulled the download links of the buggy December 2021 build soon after it paused the OTA update rollout to prevent enthusiastic Pixel 6 owners from manually installing it. This is also probably the first time the company has ever had to delist a security patch for one of its Pixel phones in all these years. If anything, this points to just how buggy the build was in the first place. Here's hoping the company is able to nail down all the issues with the January 2022 update.