{
	"id": "3ebad6ed-3adc-4aca-8123-8d7f0afb9278",
	"created_at": "2026-04-06T00:21:36.867046Z",
	"updated_at": "2026-04-10T13:11:44.433872Z",
	"deleted_at": null,
	"sha1_hash": "23b2ee655503ab684a47ef122505ba66f7e41661",
	"title": "GhostToken GCP flaw let attackers backdoor Google accounts",
	"llm_title": "",
	"authors": "",
	"file_creation_date": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z",
	"file_modification_date": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z",
	"file_size": 1197793,
	"plain_text": "GhostToken GCP flaw let attackers backdoor Google accounts\r\nBy Sergiu Gatlan\r\nPublished: 2023-04-21 · Archived: 2026-04-05 21:19:03 UTC\r\nGoogle has addressed a Cloud Platform (GCP) security vulnerability impacting all users and allowing attackers to backdoor\r\ntheir accounts using malicious OAuth applications installed from the Google Marketplace or third-party providers.\r\nNamed GhostToken by Astrix Security, the Israeli cybersecurity startup that found and reported it to Google in June 2022,\r\nthis security flaw was addressed via a global patch that rolled out in early April 2023.\r\nAfter being authorized and linked to an OAuth token that gives it access to the Google account, malicious apps could be\r\nmade invisible by attackers after exploiting this vulnerability.\r\nhttps://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/ghosttoken-gcp-flaw-let-attackers-backdoor-google-accounts/\r\nPage 1 of 4\n\n0:00\r\nhttps://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/ghosttoken-gcp-flaw-let-attackers-backdoor-google-accounts/\r\nPage 2 of 4\n\nVisit Advertiser websiteGO TO PAGE\r\nThis would hide the app from Google's application management page, the only place where Google users can manage apps\r\nconnected to their accounts.\r\n\"Since this is the only place Google users can see their applications and revoke their access, the exploit makes the malicious\r\napp unremovable from the Google account,\" Astrix Security said.\r\n\"The attacker on the other hand, as they please, can unhide their application and use the token to access the victim's account,\r\nand then quickly hide the application again to restore its unremovable state. In other words, the attacker holds a 'ghost' token\r\nto the victim's account.\"\r\nTo hide malicious apps authorized by the victims, attackers only had to make them enter a 'pending deletion' state by\r\ndeleting the linked GCP project.\r\nHowever, after restoring the project, they would be provided with a refresh token that made it possible to retrieve a new\r\naccess token that could be used to gain access to the victims' data.\r\nThese steps could be repeated in a loop, allowing the attackers to delete and restore the GCP project to hide the malicious\r\napp each time they needed access to the victim's data.\r\nGhostToken attack flow (Astrix Security)\r\nThe attack's impact depends on the permissions granted to the malicious apps installed by the victims.\r\nThe vulnerability \"allows attackers to gain permanent and unremovable access to a victim's Google account by converting\r\nan already authorized third-party application into a malicious trojan app, leaving the victim's personal data exposed forever,\"\r\nAstrix Security Research Group said.\r\n\"This may include data stored on victim's Google apps, such as Gmail, Drive, Docs, Photos, and Calendar, or Google Cloud\r\nPlatform's services (BigQuery, Google Compute, etc.).\"\r\nGoogle's patch allows GCP OAuth applications in 'pending deletion' states to appear on the 'Apps with access to your\r\naccount' page, allowing users to remove them and protect their accounts from hijack attempts.\r\nAstrix advises all Google users to visit their account's app management page and check all authorized third-party apps,\r\nensuring that each of them has only the permissions they require to function.\r\nhttps://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/ghosttoken-gcp-flaw-let-attackers-backdoor-google-accounts/\r\nPage 3 of 4\n\nAutomated Pentesting Covers Only 1 of 6 Surfaces.\r\nAutomated pentesting proves the path exists. BAS proves whether your controls stop it. Most teams run one without the\r\nother.\r\nThis whitepaper maps six validation surfaces, shows where coverage ends, and provides practitioners with three diagnostic\r\nquestions for any tool evaluation.\r\nSource: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/ghosttoken-gcp-flaw-let-attackers-backdoor-google-accounts/\r\nhttps://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/ghosttoken-gcp-flaw-let-attackers-backdoor-google-accounts/\r\nPage 4 of 4",
	"extraction_quality": 1,
	"language": "EN",
	"sources": [
		"MITRE"
	],
	"origins": [
		"web"
	],
	"references": [
		"https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/ghosttoken-gcp-flaw-let-attackers-backdoor-google-accounts/"
	],
	"report_names": [
		"ghosttoken-gcp-flaw-let-attackers-backdoor-google-accounts"
	],
	"threat_actors": [],
	"ts_created_at": 1775434896,
	"ts_updated_at": 1775826704,
	"ts_creation_date": 0,
	"ts_modification_date": 0,
	"files": {
		"pdf": "https://archive.orkl.eu/23b2ee655503ab684a47ef122505ba66f7e41661.pdf",
		"text": "https://archive.orkl.eu/23b2ee655503ab684a47ef122505ba66f7e41661.txt",
		"img": "https://archive.orkl.eu/23b2ee655503ab684a47ef122505ba66f7e41661.jpg"
	}
}