Setting up two-factor authentication¶
You set up two-factor authentication yourself, from your own profile. Nobody can do it for you, because the codes have to reach a device only you hold.
If you do not see a Two-factor authentication section in your settings, your group has not switched the feature on.
Add your first method¶
- Open your profile settings.
- Find Two-factor authentication and choose Add a method.
- Pick how you want to receive codes:
- Authenticator app — recommended, and works without signal.
- Text message — only offered if your group has a gateway set up.
- Email — leave the address blank to use your account email.
- For an authenticator app, scan the QR code with the app. If you cannot scan it, type the key shown underneath into the app by hand. For text or email, a code is sent to you straight away.
- Enter the six-digit code and choose Confirm.
Nothing is switched on until that code is accepted, so a mistyped number cannot lock you out.
Save your recovery codes¶
Confirming your first method gives you ten recovery codes. Save them somewhere you can reach without your phone — a password manager, or printed and kept somewhere safe.
They are shown once. You cannot see them again afterwards, and nobody at eBiz can retrieve them for you. If you lose them, generate a fresh set from the same panel; the old set stops working immediately.
Choose how often you are asked¶
Under How often should we ask? pick the longest gap you are comfortable with. The choice saves as soon as you make it.
This only affects devices you tick Don't ask again on this device on when signing in. Anything else is challenged every time.
Your group sets the maximum, so the list may be shorter than every-time / 12 hours / daily / weekly / monthly.
Add a second method¶
Worth doing. If you only have an authenticator app and lose your phone, your recovery codes are the only way back in.
Use Add a method again and pick a different type. The first one you added stays the default — the one offered first at sign-in — until you choose Make default on another.
Signing in from then on¶
- Enter your email and password as usual.
- Enter the code from your chosen method. To use a different method, choose Use a different method.
- Tick Don't ask again on this device if it is your own device and you want the gap you chose to apply.
A recovery code works anywhere the six-digit code is asked for.
Five wrong codes ends the attempt and you start again from the password.
If you lose your phone¶
Sign in with a recovery code, then remove the old method and add a new one.
With no recovery codes left, ask an administrator to remove the method from your account so you can enrol again. They cannot read your codes or bypass the check — they can only clear it.
Turning it off¶
Use Turn off two-factor authentication and confirm with your password. This removes every method, forgets every remembered device, and discards your recovery codes.
If your role requires it, the option is refused and you will see why.