Attempted Gmail hack

So, I just got a Gmail alert about a login attempt from some fake address in Atlanta. How is that even possible? I don't know anyone there, and I've never even set foot in that city.
Is there any chance this is just some glitch?

A few weeks back, I got this alert saying someone near Pittsburgh was trying to break into my Google account.

Look, the whole reason people turn on two-factor authentication is so you get an SMS code to verify your login—it just makes things way more secure. And please, for the love of everything, don't reuse passwords... if you have an account on some random forum, don't use that same password for your Gmail. If the forum admin is shady, they can see your credentials and try them out on your email. Just because a login shows up from Pittsburgh doesn't mean you're actually sitting there... anyone can use a VPN to mask their actual location and make it look like they're logging in from somewhere like Russia or whatever.

wiredpilot25 said:So, I just got a Gmail alert about a login attempt from some fake address in Atlanta. How is that even possible? I don't know anyone there, and I've never even set foot in that city.
Is there any chance this is just some glitch?

It’s definitely possible it's just an error.

Andrew Peterson2 said:Look, the whole reason people turn on two-factor authentication is so you get an SMS code to verify your login—it just makes things way more secure. And please, for the love of everything, don't reuse passwords... if you have an account on some random forum, don't use that same password for your Gmail. If the forum admin is shady, they can see your credentials and try them out on your email. Just because a login shows up from Pittsburgh doesn't mean you're actually sitting there... anyone can use a VPN to mask their actual location and make it look like they're logging in from somewhere like Russia or whatever.

Are you kidding me? People can actually see our passwords when we register somewhere? That's pathetic. Honestly, until a few months ago, I used the same password for everything.🤣
I don't recommend two-factor authentication. I've had n issues with those codes. Either they don't arrive, they show up too late, or my phone decides to freeze right when I need it most. For me, having an instant alert about a login attempt is perfectly fine.

(The question is, what if the person was in Washington, D.C.—would they even bother reporting it? But yeah, I've just had way more bad experiences than good ones with this SMS stuff.)

A buddy of mine once got hacked on PayPal because he used the exact same password for everything... absolute rookie mistake.
I mean, they can see your password easily enough since it’s their own platform—it's basically designed to make that kind of snooping effortless for them.

As for two-factor authentication, I don't really bother with it much. Not on my phone or my laptop, anyway. On my computer, I just set it up once and marked it as my primary device, and did the same thing on my phone... keeps things simple, I guess.