Security News > 2023 > April > Google Authenticator now backs up your 2FA codes to the cloud
The Google Authenticator app has received a critical update for Android and iOS that allows users to back up their two-factor authentication one-time passwords to their Google Accounts and have multi-device support.
Google Authenticator is an immensely popular authentication app with over 100 million installs that lets users generate these one-time passwords for 2FA verification.
While Google Authenticator is immensely popular, one of the biggest critiques has been the inability to back up one-time 2FA codes and the lack of multi-device support.
"One major piece of feedback we've heard from users over the years was the complexity in dealing with lost or stolen devices that had Google Authenticator installed," explains Google in the announcement.
With yesterday's Google Authenticator update, users will be prompted to log in to their Google account when they open the new version of the app and synchronize their 2FA codes with their Google account.
Google has set a requirement that 2-step verification must be activated on the Google Account for cloud backups to work, as it reduces the likelihood of unauthorized access.