With 2FA security you can easily make your WordPress website a lot safer. After all, that is becoming increasingly important online. Of course, you don’t want unwanted guests at the back of your website who do all kinds of nasty things unsolicited. In addition to using a strong password, enabling 2FA security is also an effective security method. We will show you what this 2FA security entails and whether it is really that safe.
What is 2FA security?
2FA security stands for Two-Factor Authentication, or Two-Factor Authentication in good Dutch. This security system not only asks you to enter your username and password when logging in, but also asks for something extra. In this way, logging in becomes a lot safer.
Often, this Two-Factor Authentication is combined with a special app, for example Google Authenticator. The website where you want to log in will then ask you to enter the code that appears in this app. That way, only the person with the right authenticator app can log in. A hacker who happens to have retrieved your login details cannot still log in that way.
In that app, a code appears that consists of a number of digits. Only when you have entered the code completely correctly, you can continue logging in. Do this on time: to be even safer, this code is refreshed every minute. In this way, it is prevented that hackers can also find out your authentication code.
Is it really safe?
Yes, basically enabling 2FA security is a lot safer than if you have not enabled it. It really provides a second step in the login process, which only you have access to. For hackers, it is a lot more difficult to hack your account. So you are safer anyway when you set this extra layer of security on your WordPress account.
However, there are a number of differences between the ways in which you can identify yourself with a 2FA security. We just talked about a special app, but there are more possibilities. You can also do this, for example, by having a code emailed or texted to you. These methods are often a bit simpler, but immediately a lot less safe. Messages and emails can always be intercepted, for example by SIM swapping. Cracking a code from your Authenticator app, on the other hand, is a practically impossible challenge.
Although setting up 2FA security does not sound immediately attractive – after all, you are working on it a little longer with every login, it is really a lot safer. That extra layer of security makes your account less attractive to hack than accounts that don’t have this security set up. And even the ‘less secure’ options such as mail or SMS are still much safer than not setting up. We therefore advise you to set this up as soon as possible in all places where this is possible, so certainly also on your WordPress website!
