Facebook will request two-step authentication

Facebook, in an effort to keep some risk accounts even more secure, is reinstating its Protect program and will soon force high-profile subscribers like journalists, politicians, and human rights activists to enable two-factor authentication (2FA).

The social network will begin this process globally in the coming months, giving priority to accounts that the company considers risky. That is, those “most likely to be attacked by malicious hackers.” By mid-February 2022, the company plans for North American users with this type of profile to start with two-factor authentication.

This program was first experienced in 2018 with US politicians, before the 2020 elections. Slowly, but progressively, the social network has been expanding the program to other users considered at risk and it is eventually expected that it may be available on more than 50 countries, including India.

Easy authentication

Facebook encourages the use of “third-party authentication applications” and highlighted that it is doing some work that will allow “the registration and use of 2FA to be as simple as possible for these groups of people by providing a better user experience and support.”

The company admits that everyone’s adaptation to the program will take some time, especially for those users who do not regularly log into their accounts. However, when reviewing the statistics of people registered in the first tests, the figures are quite acceptable.

Meta’s security policy chief, Nathaniel Gleicher, pointed out that more than 1.5 million accounts at risk are registered in the Protect program and 950,000 of them activated 2FA. He additionally reported that approximately 4 % of monthly users have it enabled for their accounts.

Facebook indicated that it does not plan to require non-Protect users to add 2FA to their accounts and recommended doing so through a security key.

M. Rodríguez

Source: diarioinforme