Google suddenly introduces new Gmail account lockout protections, including a no password required option for Android users— check your settings now.
Updated October 19 with a new lock screen recovery feature specifically for Android smartphone users, as well as a warning from Check Point Software security experts regarding the potential dangers of the Recovery Contacts update being rolled out to all Gmail users, regardless of platform.
hitting the headlines, the threat of being locked out of your Gmail account has once again moved to the forefront of security-minded users of the world’s most popular email platform. Google itself has not only confirmed updates mitigating the latest 2FA threat, but has now gone one step further by introducing a new security feature. This feature is designed to help if the worst happens and you find yourself locked out of your account due to hacker action, device loss, or password amnesia. Here’s everything you need to know about the recovery contacts setting that is rolling out as I type.With attacks against Google accounts, and that means your Gmail account as well, spiking by 84% across the past year,However, as Claire Forszt and Sriram Karra from Google’s Identity and Engagement team, have now confirmed, even if you have taken steps to help recover an account you can no longer access, such as by way of one-time SMS code, for example, “that can be hard if you lost your phone or haven’t updated your recovery phone number.”The Recovery Contacts setting enables Gmail users to choose trusted contacts, family members or close friends to provide help if ever they find themselves locked out and unable to receive a recovery code for any reason. “It’s a simple, secure way to turn to people you trust when other recovery options aren’t available,” Forszt and Karra said.The Gmail security updates are coming thick and fast, it would seem, and that’s got to be a good thing. The latest in the form of a confirmation from Eugene Liderman, Google’s director of Android security and privacy, along with John Gronberg, the product management director. “You can now regain access with your mobile number,” the Google security and safety posting stated. That might not sound much of an advance, but anyone who has been locked out of their Google account for whatever reason will surely be pleased to hear it. After all, the loss of a smartphone, whether through an account or by theft, or even breakage, can be stressful enough without having to worry about the impact that could have on access to your Google account and your Gmail as a consequence. “To make recovery on a new Android device easier,” the posting confirmed, “we’re introducing Google'sLike all good security features, this one does not add cumbersome hoops for you to jump through, but removes them instead. “All you need is the lock-screen passcode from your previous device for verification,” Liderman said. Yep, that’s right; no password required. “We are introducing this gradually worldwide,” Liderman concluded, “watch for it on a phone near you.”While I am 100% supportive of Google adding the Recovery Contacts feature to its armory of Gmail user defenses, some security experts have sounded an alert regarding a “sense of safety that isn’t always justified” that such features can create. Those were the precise words of Aaron Rose, a security architect with the office of the chief technology officer at Check Point Software, said. “If users believe Google’s new warnings and recovery methods will catch everything,” Rose told me, “they may let their guard down against more subtle or AI-generated scams.” I mean, Rose has a point, especially given the evolution of deepfakes that are getting harder and harder to detect. But in my never humble opinion, that doesn’t mean this is a dangerous security feature; it just means that users need to remember that there is no such thing as a silver bullet in security, and the basics of threat awareness need to remain in place alongside such settings. Setting up Recovery Contacts is simple enough, although Google has said that the feature is still rolling out, so it may not yet be available to you. You can check if it is and start the process by clicking thisOnce you have chosen your trusted contacts, if you need help with recovering your account, you share a code with them and, Google said, “they will get an email or notification and can confirm it’s really you by verifying that code, helping you securely regain access to your account.” Obviously, you should only select someone you can trust 100%, but Google advised that the recovery contact never actually has access to your Gmail account or any of your personal information. There’s nothing to lose, except access to your email account if the worst happens and you haven’t prepared in advance. So, what are you waiting for?Google has announced a new security awareness and education resource, based upon inoculation theory, to help protect Gmail users from potential harm. Inoculation theory, in essence, suggests that a process of pre-exposure to harm can help bolster protection against it. OK, that’s really simple, so don’t crucify me. A more detailed explanation is that exposing someone to a weak counterargument helps make the individual less susceptible to persuasion before it can take place. The Be Scam Ready game, Google has said, “immerses users in real-life scam and fraud scenarios in a safe, interactive setting.” In other words, it exposes users to common scam tactics to raise awareness and help them. Google said, to “develop the critical thinking skills needed to identify and avoid fraud in the real world.” You can start playing now
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