Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)
Two-factor authentication (2FA) is form of authentication that requires two forms of verification before authorizing access to a user. 2FA increases security because the resource is inaccessible even if one factor, like a password, gets compromised.
An authentication factor is a piece of information used to verify that you’re allowed to do something, like a keycard used to unlock a hotel door.
This is one way of characterizing authentication factors:
- Something you know: This is private knowledge that only you have, like a password or a PIN.
- Something you have: This is a physical object that only you have, like a phone, a key, or a bank card.
- Something you are: This is a physical characteristic that only you have, like a fingerprint, facial recognition, voice recognition.
Two-factor authentication, commonly abbreviated as 2FA, is any form of verification that requires two factors, like withdrawing money from an ATM using both a bank card (something you have) and its PIN (something you know).
A common first factor for online accounts is a password (something you know). A common second factor is an authentication code from an app on your phone (something you have).
DigitalOcean supports 2FA for DigitalOcean accounts that use a username and password to log in.
Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) Articles
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