AdminThe popular password manager NordPass now offers authentication in its mobile app to enable two-factor authentication (2FA) without the need for third-party services.
The tool, available to users with NordPass business accounts, will use its patented technology to integrate its authenticator with the mobile app, so you can authenticate any login stored in the vault that requires 2FA.
Like most authenticator apps, NordPass’s built-in authenticator will generate a one-time timed password (TOPT) that must be entered within 30 seconds of entering your service credentials. You can use your stored biometrics to easily access your authentication token.
Extra convenience
2FA or multi-factor authentication (MFA) relies on one of the additional devices – usually a smartphone – to authenticate the login to a particular service. This way, it ensures that others cannot access your account with just your username and password.
Most reputable services give you the option to enable 2FA to further secure your account. SMS text messages are a common way to deliver authentication codes, but they are considered less secure due to the relative ease with which cybercriminals can intercept your messages using SIM swap tactics.
Authenticator apps are generally more secure because they can’t be hacked that easily. However, the problem with them is the added inconvenience of having to download a separate app.
And while they are safer for 2FA than using SMS, NordPass points out that they still have their downsides.
Karolis Arbaciauskas, head of business development at NordPass, commented that regardless of the 2FA delivery method used, “it’s becoming more and more popular to annoy Internet users with multiple 2FA requests until they approve authentication out of confusion”, in so-called MFA fatigue attacks.
Now NordPass hopes to remedy this with its own integrated authentication. While this is only available on mobile apps for now, the company says it will be coming to desktop versions soon.
The news comes on the heels of another recent update to the password manager feature: NordPass Passkeys, which allows both business and individual users to store, autofill and share access keys in their vaults.
Passkeys allow passwordless access to certain accounts – eBay and PayPal, for example, already support them – and are believed to be more secure than passwords and likely to replace them in the near future.
