How stalkers are exploiting Google Chrome sync to spy on victims | CyberScoop<\/title> <meta name=\"description\" content=\"Researchers warn that stalkers are abusing Google Chrome\u2019s sync feature to quietly monitor victims' phones, stealing browsing histories and passwords.\"> <link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/google-chrome-sync-cyberstalking-exploit\/\"> <meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\"> <meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\"> <meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Security researchers find stalkers abusing Chrome's sync feature\"> <meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Researchers warn that stalkers are abusing Google Chrome\u2019s sync feature to quietly monitor victims' phones, stealing browsing histories and passwords.\"> <meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/google-chrome-sync-cyberstalking-exploit\/\"> <meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"CyberScoop\"> <meta property=\"article:publisher\" 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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<section id=\"stickybar\" class=\"stickybar stickybar--newsletter js-stickybar\" readability=\"0.82\"> <button class=\"stickybar__close js-stickybar-close\" aria-controls=\"stickybar\"> <svg class=\"icon icon--close\" width=\"21\" height=\"22\" viewBox=\"0 0 21 22\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"m.822.518-.805.805L9.695 11 .017 20.678l.805.805 9.678-9.678 9.677 9.678.806-.805L11.305 11l9.678-9.677-.806-.805-9.677 9.677L.822.518Z\" fill=\"currentColor\" \/><\/svg> <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Close<\/span> <\/button> <\/section>\n<article class=\"single-article content\">\n<div class=\"single-article__container js-single-article-content\">\n<header class=\"single-article__header \" readability=\"26.263227513228\">\n<div class=\"single-article__header-content\" readability=\"36.254054054054\">\n<p> Certo Software warns that the capability, designed for convenience, can easily be used to spy on online activity. <\/p>\n<p>  <br \/>\n<audio id=\"audio-player\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-tts-cdn.api.scpnewsgrp.com\/cyberscoop\/89836\/english.openai.mp3\"><\/audio> <\/p>\n<div readability=\"11\">\n<div>\n<p>Listen to this article<\/p>\n<p>  <\/p>\n<p>0:00<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>  <\/p>\n<p> <span id=\"tts-tooltip\">Learn more.<\/span> <span> This feature uses an automated voice, which may result in occasional errors in pronunciation, tone, or sentiment. <\/span> <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>  <\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__cover-wrap\">\n<figure class=\"single-article__cover\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" fetchpriority=\"high\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/security-researchers-find-stalkers-abusing-chromes-sync-feature.jpg?resize=640%2C427&ssl=1\" class=\"single-article__cover-image wp-post-image\" alt decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/security-researchers-find-stalkers-abusing-chromes-sync-feature-2.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/security-researchers-find-stalkers-abusing-chromes-sync-feature-2.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/security-researchers-find-stalkers-abusing-chromes-sync-feature-2.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/security-researchers-find-stalkers-abusing-chromes-sync-feature-2.jpg?resize=1024,683 1024w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/security-researchers-find-stalkers-abusing-chromes-sync-feature-2.jpg?resize=1536,1025 1536w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/security-researchers-find-stalkers-abusing-chromes-sync-feature-2.jpg?resize=600,400 600w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/security-researchers-find-stalkers-abusing-chromes-sync-feature-2.jpg?resize=252,168 252w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/security-researchers-find-stalkers-abusing-chromes-sync-feature-2.jpg?resize=505,337 505w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/security-researchers-find-stalkers-abusing-chromes-sync-feature-2.jpg?resize=1012,675 1012w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/security-researchers-find-stalkers-abusing-chromes-sync-feature-2.jpg?resize=1264,843 1264w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1012px) 100vw, 1012px\"><figcaption> MirageC <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"single-article__content\">\n<div class=\"single-article__content-inner has-drop-cap\"> <html readability=\"33.036267823931\"><body readability=\"68.349753694581\"><\/p>\n<p>Cyberstalkers are increasingly exploiting a feature in Google Chrome meant for mobile phone user convenience, but can give intruders broad access to a device owner\u2019s private information, according to researchers.<\/p>\n<p>Certo Software said in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.certosoftware.com\/insights\/cyberstalkers-exploiting-chrome-sync-to-spy\/\">blog post<\/a> Tuesday that stalkers are making use of Chrome\u2019s sync capability \u2014 meant to make it so signing into Chrome on one device makes it easier to do so on other devices, too \u2014 to spy on a phone owner\u2019s browsing history and gain access to their stored passwords.<\/p>\n<p>As an illustration, Certo used the case of a pseudonymous victim, Emma, who had searched for a family lawyer and visited a domestic violence support website while her partner was sleeping, only for him to bring up to her two days later.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEmma had been careful to only ever use her own device, and she hadn\u2019t noticed any new apps appear on her phone,\u201d wrote Certo co-founder Russell Kent-Payne. \u201cWhat she didn\u2019t know was that weeks earlier, during a few unattended minutes with her phone, he had opened the Chrome app and quietly signed it into a Google account of his own. From that moment on, every site she visited was being copied straight to his account, viewable from any device, anywhere in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The surveillance is as easy as that: brief access to a phone, signing into a Google account and making sure sync is turned on for that account.<\/p>\n<p>Eva Galperin, director of cybersecurity at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, <a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/evacide.bsky.social\/post\/3mqmqgz4jo22d\">said on the Bluesky social media app<\/a> that Certo\u2019s research serves as \u201can important reminder that tech-enabled abuse isn\u2019t just limited to stalkerware.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Certo said that Google could do a couple things, such as providing a temporary notification whenever a new account is added or sync is turned on or offering a regular marker to indicate when sync is active and which account it\u2019s syncing to, to protect users.<\/p>\n<p>Google did not respond to multiple requests for comment about Certo\u2019s findings.<\/p>\n<p>But the uptick in usage of that stalking method could be a byproduct of security successes elsewhere in the fight against spyware, Certo said.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cModern smartphones are harder to compromise than ever. Regular security updates, stricter app store rules, and on-device threat detection have made traditional spyware a much riskier bet for a cyberstalker than it used to be,\u201d Kent-Payne wrote. \u201cAs a result, we\u2019re increasingly seeing abusers turn to something far simpler: the legitimate apps already sitting on their victim\u2019s phone. No installation, no suspicious permissions, no telltale battery drain \u2014 just a quiet misuse of a feature the victim never knew existed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>At the same time, Chrome is the world\u2019s most popular browser, and this isn\u2019t the first time security concerns have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgr.com\/2054574\/google-chrome-sync-feature-privacy-problems\/\">popped up<\/a> about its sync feature, among <a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/zakdoffman\/2025\/12\/10\/google-confirms-account-takeovers-change-this-chrome-setting-now\/\">other worries<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><\/body> <\/p>\n<footer class=\"single-article__footer\">\n<div class=\"author-card\" readability=\"7.7216117216117\">\n<div class=\"author-card__avatar\">\n<figure class=\"author-card__image-wrap\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"author-card__image\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/security-researchers-find-stalkers-abusing-chromes-sync-feature-1.jpg?w=640&ssl=1\" alt=\"Tim Starks\"> <\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"author-card__details\" readability=\"10.901098901099\">\n<h4 class=\"author-card__name\">Written by Tim Starks<\/h4>\n<p> Tim Starks is senior reporter at CyberScoop. His previous stops include working at The Washington Post, POLITICO and Congressional Quarterly. An Evansville, Ind. native, he’s covered cybersecurity since 2003. Email Tim here: <a href=\"mailto:tim.starks@cyberscoop.com\">tim.starks@cyberscoop.com<\/a>. <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__tags-container\">\n<h4 class=\"single-article__tags-title\">In This Story<\/h4>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/footer>\n<p> <\/html><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__ads js-single-article-sidebar\">\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-5 ad--rightrail_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-4 ad--rightrail_2 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-3 ad--rightrail_3 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"popular-stories popular-stories--single-post\">\n<div 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{"id":8831,"date":"2026-07-15T15:42:37","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T20:42:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/?p=89836"},"modified":"2026-07-15T15:42:37","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T20:42:37","slug":"security-researchers-find-stalkers-abusing-chromes-sync-feature","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/2026\/07\/15\/security-researchers-find-stalkers-abusing-chromes-sync-feature\/","title":{"rendered":"Security researchers find stalkers abusing Chrome\u2019s sync feature"},"content":{"rendered":"