The Fortress Hack Attributed to Vulnerabilities in Google Authenticator’s Cloud Sync Function

Crypto News– Retool has recently revealed critical details regarding a recent hacking incident that impacted 27 cryptocurrency accounts. In this breach, a staggering $15 million worth of cryptocurrency was stolen from Fortress Trust. The attacker successfully gained control by exploiting a vulnerability in the Google Authenticator cloud sync function. The initial breach occurred when the hacker gained access to the victim’s Google account, subsequently compromising the data stored within Google Authenticator.

The Fortress Hack Attributed to Vulnerabilities in Google Authenticator’s Cloud Sync Function

The software development company, Retool, which is headquartered in San Francisco, has disclosed a concerning security breach affecting 27 of its cloud customers. This breach was the result of a targeted SMS-based social engineering attack, raising significant alarm within the cybersecurity community.

Retool’s Head of Engineering, Snir Kodesh, has attributed part of the issue to a Google Account cloud synchronization feature introduced in April 2023, referring to it as a “dark pattern” that exacerbated the situation. According to Kodesh, the synchronization of Google Authenticator to the cloud unexpectedly emerged as a novel attack vector, catching them off guard.

This occurred despite their initial implementation of multi-factor authentication, which, unbeknownst to administrators, had silently transformed into single-factor authentication due to a Google update.