Tech giant Google has recently acknowledged a glitch in its Password Manager that has been causing accidental password deletions, leaving shocked users unable to access their accounts, Android Police reported.
Google often offers exclusive features to its Workspace customers, but some are also accessible to individual accounts.
One such feature is Google Password Manager (GPM), which can be used as a standalone app, a Chrome integration, and an Android system component.
A secure password vault should remain unaffected when you clear your browser’s browsing data; however, a Reddit user recently lost all their saved passwords while performing this action in Chrome, highlighting a significant concern.
The Reddit user, /u/harish9294, shared their ordeal of using Google’s integrated credential storage system on their Pixel 7 Pro with GPM.
The user chose this system over other password managers for an integrated and unified experience, only to have all their credentials wiped out due to a default setting that included “Saved passwords” while clearing browsing data in Chrome for Android. This incident was reported on Tech-Issues Today.
The problem arose because the “Saved passwords” option was checked by default, and Chrome did not provide any confirmation, alerts, or two-factor authentication requests before permanently deleting the critical data.
To avoid this inconvenience, many users have recommended unchecking this option beforehand so that Chrome remembers the preference.
However, Himanshu Arora, the founder of PuinikaWeb, lost all his passwords while trying to recreate the problem.
Another user on Reddit reported the issue to Chromium, and a Google employee has noticed the problem and promised to remove the toggle.
Until this change takes place, users are strongly advised to switch to a dedicated password manager, especially if they use GPM to generate strong passwords or store important passkeys.
