Google Authentictor Free Smartphone App

This extension is NOT a Google official product, so it cannot sync with your Google Authenticator data on your Android phone, iPhone or tablet.

Your data will be auto sync with Google Account if you have logged in.

To guys who want this extension buyout: this extension has a very strict content security policy, it is impossible to insert any ADs into the extension to make money, so please DO NOT write emails to me any more.

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You can add as many accounts as you like to Google Authenticator as long as they support 2FA.

Yet even in this time of Apples Face ID, Windows 10s Hello, and the up-and-coming FIDO2 specification, passwords are still the main way we log in to our various accounts.

Thats why two-factor authentication (2FA) is an important secondary step to guard your online data and services.

What is two-factor authentication Two-factor, or multi-factor, authentication is an additional login code for an accounta second line of defense to your sensitive info.

The basic idea is that a single password for your important accounts simply isnt enough.

If your password is guessed, or hackers steal a database with your login information in plain text, your account is a sitting duck.

Two-factor authentication tries to address that flaw by requiring a secondary code called a one-time password (OTP)usually six characters in length and generated by a smartphone appbefore you can gain access to your account.

That way even if a hacker has your password theyll still need to crack a secondary code, which makes getting in that much harder.

Theres also an easier way to use 2FA called the FIDO U2F standard, supported by Google, Facebook, and many others.

With this kind of authentication you use a physical security key, and insert that into your PC, touch the keys button, and youre automagically logged in.

If you decide to get your 2FA codes via SMS, for example, the code could potentially be intercepted by hackers, as researchers for Positive Technologies demonstrated in 2017.

That said, SMS authentication is still far better than nothing.

The trio found that SMS authentication blocked 96 percent of bulk phishing attacks, and 76 percent of targeted attacks trying to crack into your Google account.

Thats not bad protection, but Googles on-device prompt strategy (well cover this later) was even better, blocking 99 percent of bulk phishing attacks, and 90 percent of targeted attacks.

App-based two-factor authentication is similar in that the second step is generated on the smartphone itself.

So while this study didnt mention 2FA apps specifically, we expect the results would be the same as, if not better than, an on-device prompt.

The fact is, using a software- or hardware-based 2FA solution on a device you own is a great way to protect your account, and far better than simply using SMS.

Software options Any service that supports the standard OTP 2FA approach will work with all of the apps below, and that includes most mainstream websites and services.

One notable exception is Steam, which provides a homegrown 2FA option in its mobile app.

Google Authenticator: Best overall Google One of the more common ways of using two-factor authentication is Google Authenticator.

Google Authentictor Free Smartphone App

This is a free smartphone app from Google available for both Android and iOS.

Using it is very simple and can introduce beginners to the basic premise of most 2FA apps.

What you do is enable two-factor authentication on your services such as Facebook, Gmail, Dropbox.

Once its enabled, the service will ask you to take a snapshot of a QR code using the appAndroid users need to download a QR code reading app to work with Google Authenticator.

Note: In some cases, 2FA is also called two-step verification, which is a distinction we wont get into here.

Once the QR codes been read, Authenticator will start generating codes and the service will typically ask you to input the current one to verify 2FA is working.

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