The tech industry has left us with a good reminder about how overly dependent we are on their technology and the latest nudge comes from the Google password bug. Just a week ago, the Microsoft-CrowdStrike outage caused global upheaval after systems everywhere shut down and refused to start back up. While things have gone back to normal in most cases, the outage was a good reminder of why tech monopolies are, and always have been, a bad idea. In the most recent issues with Google, approximately 15 million Chrome users had their saved password disappear.
Considering how the majority of users rely on Google to remember the password to the dozens of accounts they log in to every day, this was a very serious issue indeed.
Image: Google
Google Password Bug Locks Chrome Users Out from Accessing Saved Passwords
The password manager issue came to light on July 24 and extended to July 25, after some users who went to log in to their accounts, noticed that the autofill feature provided them with their usernames only. Their autofill passwords were nowhere to be found. With it becoming increasingly common for users to use randomized, lengthy passwords that get stored on Google to secure their accounts, this made it harder for them to access their accounts and caused temporary panic about where that information had been waylaid.
Users could still log in if they remembered their passwords or had them saved elsewhere, but not everyone has each account detail recorded in such an easily accessible fashion. The only one who they expected to remember the password was Google. The password manager issue also prevented people from being able to save any new passwords. The problem persisted for 17 hours and 51 minutes according to the tech tycoon.
What Caused the Google Password Issue?
There are over 3 billion Chrome users which means a considerable number of people were vulnerable to the problem but not all of them were affected. The company confirmed that the Google password bug had only affected users who had the M127 version of Chrome Browser, and while the configuration was rolled out to 25 percent of its user base, only 2 percent experienced the issue. Despite that sounding like a small number, it was estimated that approximately 15 million users were affected.
The Google Workspace Status Dashboard later provided another update on why the saved passwords had disappeared, highlighting that it was a result of a “change in product behavior without proper feature guard.” This didn’t make the situation any clearer for users, but at least they were reassured that there wasn’t a data attack or leak that had stolen the information away from them to place it in the hands of someone else.
How Did Google Respond to the Situation?
Google was very quick to respond to the situation when it came to light and identified the cause early on. The company provided users with a step-by-step guide to work around the issue and relaunch Chrome with a simple command line flag. Users who still had a problem were encouraged to reach out to the support page.
Google apologized for the password manager issue in the same incident report stating, “We apologize for the inconvenience this service disruption/outage may have caused.” It wasn’t nearly enough to persuade users that the issue has been truly resolved and will not be a problem again.
Apple execs have likely enjoyed the chaos that the Google password bug has caused, especially considering their recent campaign against privacy measures on browsers other than Safari. While the privacy message highlighted in the ad didn’t necessarily discuss the password manager on Chrome, it still prompted users to switch to a Safari browser for all their needs. This was an unfortunately timed misstep for Google, although there is technically no right time for a service error.
Should You Still Consider Using a Password Manager for Your Accounts?
The Google password bug has reminded us all of how technology is not as unfailing as we expect and trust it to be. A small error update or a lapse in security can make millions vulnerable to inconveniences ranging from something as simple as being unable to check your email temporarily, to more complex concerns like losing personal data to hackers. Thankfully, Google was able to identify and address the problem quickly to help those who had their saved passwords disappear, but it has still made users weary about relying on technology.
Despite these concerns, technology and the overall presence of the internet as a permanent fixture in our lives cannot be denied. Considering the number of accounts we log into on a daily basis, it is nearly impossible for most of us to have a truly unique and secure password for each one, while also remembering them all on the go. Compromising on security by creating simple passwords and repeating them across accounts is a bad idea and never the solution to this issue.
As a result, despite the immense leap of faith it takes to trust another tech service, it is better to use a password manager of some kind to track all your different login details. Password managers provide additional protection for users who are interested in creating multiple layers of authentication before any account can be accessed by setting up encrypted digital vaults that house the sensitive data. The Chrome browser password manager is free and comes at no cost so it’s easier to use, but there are other companies that can provide a second backup for your account details as well.