Re: Google will no longer send SMSs with six digit codes for verification

Dave Royal <dave@dave123royal.com> wrote:
[...]

Where Google leads others will follow.
 
My brother has a hotmail account. He doesn't have internet at
 home, he uses a PC at the library. Recently outlook.com required
 a 2FA/SMS authentication because he was using an unfamiliar
 device. (I was surprised this hadn't happened before - that MS
 were previously allowing signon with just a password. He's had
 this account taken over once already - quite a faff.) He has a
 non-smartphone which he occasionally uses for 2FA/SMS when making
 online purchases.
 
It will be interesting to see whether Google offer any
 authentication methods that don't involve a smartphone. My guess
 is no. Voice recognition might be a possibily; my telephone bank
 claims to recognise me by voice and no longer requires passwords,
 though it probably uses other clues too, like the call
 origin.

  Google already offers such 2SV authentication methods: Authenticator
program, Passkeys and security keys and Backup codes.

  But Authenticator program and Passkeys need a program on your
computer, so that's not a solution for your brother, because he can't
install software on the PC at the library. He could use Backup codes.
(I've no experience with security keys (for Google).)

  For details, see <https://myaccount.google.com/signinoptions/twosv>.
For each of the 'Second steps' options, there is a 'Find out more (?)'
link.