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My authenticator app broke mid-login and locked me out of my bank account for 3 days
This happened last Thursday morning. I was trying to pay a bill and went to login to my credit union's website. The 2FA code from Google Authenticator wasn't working. Tried it like 6 times, reset the app, still nothing. Turns out the time sync on my phone got off by like 2 minutes and Google Authenticator doesn't fix that automatically. I had to call the bank and they put a freeze on my account for 3 days while they verified my identity. They FedExed me a physical code generator that cost $15. I switched to Authy because it has cloud backup and time sync correction built in. Has anyone else had their authenticator app drift like that or am I just unlucky?
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cole_baker1mo ago
Did your phone's alarm clock start going off late too?
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phoenix2461mo ago
Man that reminds me of what happened to my buddy Dave last year. His alarm went off 45 minutes late for like a whole week before he noticed. He missed two early meetings and almost got in trouble at work before he figured out his phone was stuck on the wrong time zone from a recent trip. Worst part was he kept blaming the phone and resetting it but it just kept happening until he finally called his carrier. Funny how something so simple can mess up your whole routine like that.
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karen3611mo ago
Oh man, that is such a nightmare. I've had my phone act up with time sync before and it's the worst feeling when you're locked out of something important. Glad you got it sorted even if it took three days and a FedEx delivery to fix it.
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