Be vigilant when using 2FA

[aymdoo]

Hello everyone,

In this crypto universe most of us use 2FA (2 factor authentication) in many services, such as mails, exchanges and more.
It's strongly recommended to use 2FA. I use it on almost all my accounts. There are several apps that make 2FA, and the most used is Google Authenticator.

But one thing that many people do not know is the fact that Google Authenticator (GA) does not save your 2FA accounts in your google account. So if you lose your phone you lose access to all accounts linked to your GA (unless the site has some additional recovery mechanism).

So if you use GA it is worth taking at least one of these two precautions:
-You should always note the key when registering an 2FA account. Few people realize, but there is always a sequence of numbers below the QR code (or somewhere else on the website) when you register that account on your GA.
- Register the account on another device, such as a tablet.

An excellent alternative to GA is Authy app. This program works just like GA, but it saves your access accounts. That way, if you lose your cell phone, that's okay, as your data is backed up in the cloud.

Authy has an option to prohibit the registration of new devices. So if someone steals your Auth password, they can not add an additional device, unless if an authorized device allows the registration of new devices to your account.

In theory, GA is safer than Authy, because your data never leaves your phone. But for most cases it's more probable I lose my phone (or it breaks or whatever) than an attacker steals my passwords and my authy account and authorizes a new device. Anyway, using GA taking these precautions mentioned above is a great option.

Edit: Authy also has a google chrome extension, so you can use it on your desktop.

[sieemma]

You are very right dude, I remember not saving the back up keys to my first account i used GA for and I da to disable GA on the site and start the whole process again. It is advisable to disable google auth if you have not saved the back up key and start the process again then write the back up key now! Thanks anyway

[cryptothief]

Decent tip that about disabling the 2FA and restarting to get the key. I keep a record of mine, but might do another run through and make sure they are all backed up. Just don't forget to re-activate it, it's a risky game.