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If you’ve taken even just a single moment to consider your online security, you have likely heard of the term Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) or perhaps Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA). While these two ideas may sound complex or even intimidating , we promise you that they aren’t, and we’ll break down exactly what they mean.
Going one step further, after we discuss what exactly Two-Factor Authentication is and why it’s essential, we’ll highlight how to enable it for some of your online accounts. Especially when it comes to online banking, Two-Factor Authentication can be a life-saver that helps increase account securityand protect your finances.
What Is Two-Factor Authentication (and Why Is It Important)?
Let’s break down the term ‘Two-Factor Authentication.’ For starters, you already know what authentication is, and you’ve likely used a password to log into your online accounts. When we authenticate something, we provide information that helps prove that we should have legitimate access to something, such as an online bank account.
Types of Authentication
There are four types of authentication in practice, and we call these authentication factors. The authentication factors that we may use are as follows:
- Something you havesuch as a physical object that you possess. The most common example of this would be a key that you might use to unlock the front door of your home. Another example is a debit or credit card that has unique numbers—it is a physical object.
- Something you knowsuch as a password, security key, or PIN. This is what we are most familiar with regarding online authentication. You may want to log into your bank account, so you will be required to enter a password—it is something within your brain .
- Something you aresuch as a fingerprint or facial scan. We are most familiar with this form of authentication when unlocking a mobile phone. If you have an iPhone or Android device, you have likely used…
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