Nuked Hey there, tech-loving friends! Today’s the last day to switch away from Twitter’s SMS two-factor authentication (2FA) method, so we wanted to make sure you’re aware of the changes.
Starting on March 20th, Twitter will be placing its text message-based 2FA behind their $8 per month Blue paywall. If you don’t switch away from SMS verification or pay for Blue before that deadline, Twitter will turn off your 2FA completely and leave your account vulnerable to hacking.
But don’t worry! There are still ways to enable 2FA for free. You can use an authenticator app like Google Authenticator or Authy, or you can use a security key (though this requires the purchase of an actual piece of hardware).
Twitter’s making SMS 2FA a paid feature because it’s the least secure form of authentication. This may seem counterintuitive, but it should at least steer non-subscribers away from the method, as it’s known to leave users susceptible to an attack known as SIM swapping.
SIM swapping is when a bad actor uses social engineering or some other kind of tactic to convince your mobile carrier to reassign your phone number to their device. They can then intercept the text messages you receive, including those SMS 2FA codes, potentially allowing them to gain access to your accounts.
It may sound like a hassle to download and create an account with an authenticator app if you don’t already use one, but the process is actually pretty simple. Check out this link for more information on how to set up an alternate 2FA method on Twitter.
