Posted by Data breaches exposed billions of records in 2019. And it seems like there’s a new major data breach every month. One of the best things you can to do protect your accounts and personal identity is two factor authentication (2FA).
What is 2-Factor Authentication?
2FA is a process where you secure access to online accounts with more than a username and password. Usually, the “second factor” is a text message to your cell phone or an email to the email address you have on file. A code is sent to your phone or email. You have to type that code into a security challenge screen to prove your identity. Why does this work? A hacker would have to have your cell phone or access to your email address to successfully get past accounts set up with 2-Factor Authentication.
There are also 2FA applications like Google Authenticator on the Android Play Store and Apple App Store. Banks, medical practices and other types of companies that store your confidential information may require an even stronger method of 2-Factor Authentication instead of text or email challenges.
If you’re a current renter…
If you’re renting with Home Rental Services, you probably know about the “Online Portal by AppFolio” application. This application allows you to access your renter portal to pay rent, submit maintenance requests and more. 2FA is now an option in the Online Portal app. We recommend you enable this security feature.
People often skip 2FA because “it’s a pain”
Sadly, many people don’t enable 2FA on their accounts if nothing bad has ever happened. Even worse, they use similar (or the same) passwords across many of their accounts.
The “pain” of setting up and using 2FA is so much less than if you actually get hacked. Check out this article by Roger Grimes at InfoWorld, “15 signs you’ve been hacked and how to fight back.” When you see what can happen, and what you have to do to clean things up, you might be convinced it’s time to set up 2-Factor Authentication!
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