Brave does not preserve my login sessions after I completely close and reopen the browser.
I first noticed this with OKX, but I am also experiencing similar behavior with the Bitwarden browser extension.
With OKX, the session is lost every time I completely close Brave. I have confirmed that the same OKX account remains logged in when I perform the same test in Chrome on the same computer.
Bitwarden also becomes locked after completely closing and reopening Brave, despite being configured to use “On system lock” as the session timeout.
How can this issue be reproduced?
Open Brave and log into OKX, including completing 2FA.
Close Brave completely.
Reopen Brave and open OKX. The account is logged out and requires the username/password and 2FA again.
The same behavior can be observed with Bitwarden:
Unlock the Bitwarden extension using the PIN.
Close Brave completely.
Reopen Brave. Bitwarden is locked again and requires the PIN.
Expected result:
OKX should retain its login session after closing and reopening Brave, as it does in Chrome.
Bitwarden should retain its session state according to its configured session timeout rather than being locked simply because Brave was closed.
Brave Version( check About Brave):
Brave 1.94.117 (Official Build) (64-bit)
Chromium 152.0.7977.64
Windows
Additional Information:
I tested the OKX behavior using the same computer and account in both browsers:
Chrome: Log into OKX → close Chrome → reopen Chrome → OKX remains logged in.
Brave: Log into OKX → close Brave → reopen Brave → OKX is logged out and requires 2FA again.
This happens consistently when Brave is completely closed.
My Bitwarden settings are:
Unlock with PIN: Enabled
Require master password on browser restart: Disabled
Session timeout: On system lock
Timeout action: Lock
The issue appears to be specific to Brave. I would like to determine whether Brave is failing to preserve website cookies/session data and/or browser extension state when the browser is completely closed.
Close one normal Brave window while Brave remains running
Yes
Quit Brave completely
Usually yes
Restart the computer
Usually yes
Lock Windows
Yes, unless the site’s session itself expires
Use a Private Window
No, by design
“Clear data on exit” enabled (brave://settings/clearBrowserData)
No, for selected data
“Forget me when I close this site” enabled (Site-Specific Shields panel ← Lion icon)
No, for that site’s data
Website’s own session expires
No
Website invalidates/revokes the session
No
Website’s Anti-bot / anti-abuse challenge triggered by Brave’s privacy characteristics (Challenge may be silent and/or not visible)
No
Extension changes state
Uncertain → An extension’s state can depend on the extension itself, Brave’s extension lifecycle, stored extension data, or the reason the browser was restarted.
Thanks for the detailed troubleshooting steps. I performed the initial tests.
I disabled all Brave extensions, then logged into OKX, completely closed Brave, and reopened it. OKX was still logged out and required the username/password and 2FA again.
I also confirmed:
Clear data on exit: OFF
Forget me when I close this site: OFF
Deleted the OKX cookies/site data and tested again → same result
All extensions disabled → same result
I also compared this directly with Chrome on the same computer and using the same OKX account:
Chrome: Login → completely close Chrome → reopen → OKX remains logged in
Brave: Login → completely close Brave → reopen → OKX is logged out
The Bitwarden extension also becomes locked after completely closing and reopening Brave, despite its session timeout being set to On system lock. This may be a separate issue, but it occurs with the same browser restart event.
So far, the issue consistently reproduces with Brave even with extensions disabled and after clearing the OKX site data.
Adding a note, here; the website is using Cloudflare, that may be involved as a known frustration for Brave Browser users. I only visited the website, no account/no sign-in … Developer Tools > Network window including some of the Console log:
Because, Cloudflare is fussy and expects → most or all of how “you” appear to it and its protected website … to persist. A restart of Brave Browser often presents at least a slightly different appearance to websites. Conundrum ( ← usage? ) thing.
I also tried using Secure DNS with Cloudflare (1.1.1.1) as suggested, but unfortunately the issue remains the same.
After changing the DNS settings, I logged into OKX in Brave, completely closed Brave, and reopened it. OKX was still logged out and required me to enter my credentials and 2FA again.
I also noticed the same restart-related behavior with the Bitwarden extension. After unlocking Bitwarden with my PIN, I completely close Brave and reopen it. Bitwarden is locked again and requires my PIN.
My Bitwarden settings are configured with Session timeout: On system lock, so I would expect it to lock when I lock Windows, not simply because I close and reopen Brave.
So far I have tested:
All Brave extensions disabled → same OKX issue
Clear data on exit → OFF
“Forget me when I close this site” → OFF
Deleted OKX cookies/site data → same issue
Tested another Brave profile → same issue
Secure DNS with Cloudflare (1.1.1.1) → same issue
Chrome on the same computer → OKX session persists after browser restart
Bitwarden in Brave → also loses its unlocked state after browser restart
At this point, the issue seems consistently reproducible with Brave regardless of extensions, profile, OKX site data, or DNS configuration.
Yeah great troubleshooting/testing from the both of you – I’m honestly out of suggestions. Going to do some digging on this – in the meantime @retry5598 would you be willing to download the Beta build and test the behavior there and see if you get the same results?
Additionally, can you actually try clearing browsing/site data for OKX, then login and perform the test again? Wondering if that site is stuck in some “bad state” and needs to be flushed out.
