My 2FA backup codes got stolen from a screenshot I forgot about

So last month I redid my phone and needed to get into my email. I found an old screenshot folder from like 3 years ago and there it was, a photo of my backup codes for my main account. I had taken it back in 2022 and completely forgot. Anyone who got into my phone or cloud could have locked me out of everything. I changed all my codes and turned off screenshot permissions for sensitive apps, but it got me thinking how many other people have that same screenshot sitting around. Has anyone else ever found old credentials they forgot were saved like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

daniel47422d ago

Man, that's like finding a live grenade in your winter coat pocket. We've all got that one dusty folder or note app where we stashed something stupid back in 2020 and forgot it existed. The real kicker is that screenshot probably had your dog's name as the password hint right below it too. At least you caught it before some random person on a shady public wifi did. Maybe we should all do a yearly "digital junk drawer" cleanout and pretend we're responsible adults.

the_wren22d ago

Wait, did your friend also have like three different folders named "random pics" and "misc" and "stuff" that all turned out to be the same junk pile? My buddy once did that exact thing with his old phone and found a screenshotted list of his bank login questions with the answers right there in plain text. He said he felt like he was staring at a future identity theft headline. The scary part is he'd handed that phone to a repair guy a month earlier to fix the screen, and now he's pretty sure that guy could've drained his whole account. We all did a group "digital dump day" after that, and honestly, it's still overdue again.