This would work well if we change the "upgrade available" notification to one that doesn't specifically have an "up" icon.  There are some exploratory proposals along those lines.

If we need a solution before then we might be able to do some sort of interim icon.

I think it's useful to consider a light message that goes with the icon change to make it more explicit but not steal focus. That's close to a pattern what maxwalker@ and I have been exploring.

Changing the owner until we have a clarity on design and direction.

Archiving old bugs that have only received trivial updates for some time.

If you feel this issue should still be addressed, feel free to reopen it or to file a new issue. Thanks!