Maintaining your online accounts safe from hackers necessitates careful attention, dedication, and a fairly good memory. Even in the event that you try to do your best, there's always an opportunity that hackers will figure out a means at... unless you add another layer of protection.
Starting today you can purchase a device from Google which will make lots of your account virtually hacker-proof. It's known as the Titan Security Key and it retails for $50 in Google's online store.
The key may not seem like much, but don't let its appearance and the $50 price tag scare you off. The type of peace-of-mind the Titan Security Key provides is priceless.
Security keys are quite typical in corporate environments. There utilized as a means to double-check that only authorized users are getting remote networks or running sensitive applications. When used in addition to a password, PIN, or biometric as part of a two-factor authentication (2FA) or two-step verification (2SV) system the secret greatly reduces the chances of a successful login by hackers.
Google made the Titan Security Key work seamlessly with its products such as your Google account, Gmail, the G Bundle programs. It is possible to leverage its security-boosting skills with dozens of different websites and programs.
The Titan Security Key is fully compatible with FIDO, that stands for Fast ID Online. FIDO is"a pair of technology-agnostic security criteria for strong authentication." Over 260 companies are part of this FIDO alliance -- Google, naturally, as well as tech heavy-hitters such as Amazon, Facebook, Microsoft, and Paypal.
In case you are wondering if one of your favorite websites or programs supports FIDO, there is an easy method to discover. Head to dongleauth.info and you're going to get a categorized listing that covers everything from government websites to talk apps to internet shopping and banking. If there's a check in the box indicated U2F (universal two-factor), then you are all set.
So just how much of a difference could a U2F secret make? Google claims that since it rolled out the Titan Security Key for its staff there has not been one successful cyber attack. That's a significant win. Phishing attacks price American businesses half of a billion dollars annually.
It's possible to pick up a less expensive U2F crucial, but the Titan has one characteristic that many others don't. It's dedicated processor that makes sure nobody has tampered with it. The chances of that happening to you might be distant, but to get an additional $30 so it is a very small price to cover nearly bulletproof account security.