It has recently become mandatory to use a Google account with two-step verification. And it turns out: accounts are hacked less as a result.
2fa stands for two-factor authentication; in good Dutch that is two-step verification. With this login method, the user has to enter an additional code during the login process. That code is located on local hardware that only the user has access to, so other people can’t log in with your email address and password. That makes accounts more secure.
Mandatory 2fa for Google Accounts
Since October 2021, two-step verification is mandatory for Google account owners. The search engine giant’s own research now shows that this has resulted in fifty percent less hacking of accounts.
The big challenge with something like two-step verification is that users often don’t understand how it works, if they understand exactly what it’s useful for.
“In addition, we need to make sure that users’ accounts are set up correctly”, thus Guemmy Kim, Google responsible for account security and safety. “Users should provide an alternate email address and phone number to avoid losing access to their accounts when two-step verification is enabled.”
Two-step verification is an important part of your online security, but many people find setting it up and then using the option a hassle. For example, Twitter said that only 2.3 percent of all users actively use this method. That is four percent among Facebook users. So there is still a lot of profit to be made.
