Going with a reliable company helps guarantee continued support for new mobile operating systems and tech support if something goes wrong.

Reliability: Pretty much anyone with an app developer license can make an authentication app, so when it came to security, we looked for apps that are open source or run by well-known companies like Google, Twilio, Cisco, or Microsoft.We also appreciate a search bar so you can find a specific app or website. Usability: An authenticator should make it easy to add new accounts, find existing accounts, and delete unneeded accounts.

Availability on Windows and Mac is useful but isn’t a requirement.

Platform compatibility: A good two-factor authentication app should work on both Android and iOS.

You should send reports of phishing attempts to the FTC, but since most people don’t, it’s hard to know how often such phishing happens. The FBI does warn people about the risks of SIM swapping and phishing tools, but two-factor authentication is still effective in protecting accounts. Not much data is available about the specifics of phishing attempts like this, but the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center received 25,344 reports of phishing in 2017 (PDF). Unlike a stolen password, two-factor authentication software tokens need to be grabbed in real time to be useful. Someone could email you a link to a fake Gmail login page saying your account needs an update, where you then log in with your username, password, and two-factor authentication token. It is still susceptible to advanced phishing attempts.

But two-factor authentication isn’t perfect-no security tool is. Two-factor authentication can protect against more-basic phishing attempts, such as when a fake login page tries to steal your password.

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