Facebook Simplifies Two-Factor Authentication Setup

2-factor authentication helps protect your accounts from prying optics, but setting it upwards can be a pain. So, Facebook is making the process a little easier.

You lot can at present ready two-factor authentication on the social network without registering a phone number.

"Nosotros previously required a phone number in order to prepare up two-gene hallmark, to assistance prevent business relationship lock-outs," Facebook Product Managing director Scott Dickens wrote in a blog post. "Now that we have redesigned the feature to make the procedure easier to utilize third-party authentication apps like Google Authenticator and Duo Security on both desktop and mobile, we are no longer making the phone number mandatory."

To enable two-cistron authentication on your Facebook account, caput to settings and click the "Security and Login" tab. From in that location, Facebook's new "streamlined setup flow" will guide you through the process of turning on the feature.

The change comes subsequently Facebook in February promised to fix a "bug" that caused people who signed up for ii-gene hallmark to receive spammy, non-security related SMS notifications. Software engineer Gabriel Lewis said he started receiving SMS letters informing him when friends posted on Facebook later on enabling 2-factor hallmark on his account. Worse, when Lewis responded to the texts demanding Facebook stop sending them, his responses were posted on his Facebook page as status updates.

"This was not an intentional conclusion; this was a problems," Facebook's chief security officer Alex Stamos said at the time. "The terminal matter we desire is for people to avoid helpful security features because they fear they volition receive unrelated notifications."

About Angela Moscaritolo

Angela Moscaritolo

Angela Moscaritolo is PCMag'southward proficient on fitness and smart home products. Didactics yoga for nearly 10 years has helped her in evaluating a range of continued health products including fitness trackers, heart rate monitors, rowers, smart scales, stationary bikes, strength training machines, treadmills, and more. Angela as well tests smart abode devices from her ranch in Florida, including air purifiers, kitchen appliances, and robot vacuums, but to proper name a few.