In order to safeguard users from account hijacks, Twitter is disabling the SMS-based two-factor authentication for general users soon.
Starting March 20th, non-Blue users on the platform will be de-linked for their SMS-based 2FA setting – if set – and be forced to try the alternate means. Well, this is for their own good, as SMS-based verification is widely being abused by hackers, with Twitter experiencing it adequately in the past.
Twitter’s SMS-Based 2FA Authentication
Years after experiencing an infamous impersonation campaign, Twitter is now learning it’s lesson by disabling a SMS-based two-factor authentication system for users. In a blog post shared today, the company noted blocking general users from enabling SMS-based 2FA settings – and will disable all such 2FAs currently active on March 20th!
Instead, the company asks users to try the better alternative models – a third-party authenticator app or a physical security key. These can safeguard your account better than SMS-based verification – since they partially need your physical presence to log in.
Thus, the company is now disabling this insecure method for all the general users – but continues to serve Blue subscribers. Though it’s an easy mode and widely used – Twitter doesn’t want it’s users to rely on SMS OTP for verification. Citing this method as widely abused by hackers, Twitter will forcibly de-link users having this setting enabled on March 20th.
So you should better be prepared for it – or disable this by yourself and set up alternative modes. Twitter, in it’s recent transparency report, noted that over 2.6% of it’s total user base has 2FA enabled – where over 74% of them use SMS as their verification means.
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