3 ms·

Change a few words and this feels exactly like the security theatre of the modern login experience, 2FA, MFA, I'm sure they're working on the next insufferable

Change a few words and this feels exactly like the security theatre of the modern login experience, 2FA, MFA, I'm sure they're working on the next insufferable "best practice" to try tie your phone to you even more. Good luck logging into some services if you dare keep your phone in another room for a change. Flashback to the time I was getting approximately 50 Microsoft 2FA SMS's a day. The place I worked then had forced Chrome's homepage to be some crappy SharePoint page. Getting into that required logging into our Microsoft account, and the checkbox to remember our login for five days literally never worked. So every time I opened a new tab in Chrome, I'd get a SMS. Truly, we are living in the future.

4ggr0 3y ago
to be fair, sounds like the place you worked at misconfigured something, rather than M$.
apetresc 3y ago
Tip: if you find that the "remember my login" ticks never seem to work for you, it's likely your browser's "Enhanced Tracking Prevention" or whatever. You should be able to disable it for just the domain that the authentication portal itself is happening on. Helped a lot for me.
data-ottawa 3y ago
I always wonder what would happen to most people if there was a house fire and all their phones and laptops burned at once. It’s not clear what the best security plan for that is (safety deposit box or fireproof safe seem like the best options).
- wongarsu 3y ago
  Most places will deactivate your account's 2FA if you can convincingly prove your identity. Of course hackers noticed that too, and might try to disable your 2FA once they have enough private information about you ...
  - iforgotpassword 3y ago
    So, not Google.
- thierrydamiba 3y ago
  I tried to go phone free once. It was going well until I had to pay my car note.
- eloisius 3y ago
  I stress about getting my shit stolen every time I’m traveling and being completely locked out of everything. I stash an extra phone separate from my main phone every time I travel for that reason.
  - lancesells 3y ago
    You have two phones with the same number? I didn't know that was possible.
    - eloisius 3y ago
      No, but most SMS-based 2fa is linked to my voip number, which then requires 2fa stored in a password manager.
      - lancesells 3y ago
        Makes sense. Thanks.
- whamlastxmas 3y ago
  Many services let you print 2fa codes. Keep them at a friends house
Kharacternyk 3y ago
The primary MFA device should be a Yubikey or something similar. Some of such keys are designed to be permanently plugged in. People use phones instead when they don't want to invest into a key or as a backup. EDIT: Or when OTP over SMS is the only MFA method supported as it likely is in your case.
- alpaca128 3y ago
  Does that also work if Google again randomly decides I have to use a specific one of multiple MFA choices? Recently it forced me to dig out my old phone I hadn't been using for months and boot it just to confirm a popup because it simply wouldn't let me select a different method. I don't know what would have happened if I'd lost the phone instead of just buying a new one after support ended. It didn't even let me enter my printed out backup codes, which kind of defeats the purpose. And most people aren't even using a free password manager, there's no chance they're going to buy and configure a Yubikey.
chankstein38 3y ago
I once ran over my phone with a mower. Tried to log onto Verizon's site to buy a new one. Please enter the code shown on your phone. No alternative way to sign in. Nothing. I contacted chat support and they wouldn't talk to me until I verified through my phone. Obviously impossible. I ended up chatting with sales support and begging each person to forward me to tech support until one finally took pity on me and forwarded me to someone who was cool enough to actually help me. What the hell.
Unfrozen0688 3y ago
>The place I worked then had forced Chrome's homepage to be some crappy SharePoint page. Getting into that required logging into our Microsoft account, and the checkbox to remember our login for five days literally never worked. Yes but, usually you are logged into your PC with the same account. So with SSO in Edge and Firefox, it would just log you in.
- lloydatkinson 3y ago
  Except it didn’t.
  - Unfrozen0688 3y ago
    Yes because Chrome does not have Azure AD Windows account SSO :)

4ggr0 3y ago

to be fair, sounds like the place you worked at misconfigured something, rather than M$.

apetresc 3y ago

Tip: if you find that the "remember my login" ticks never seem to work for you, it's likely your browser's "Enhanced Tracking Prevention" or whatever. You should be able to disable it for just the domain that the authentication portal itself is happening on. Helped a lot for me.

data-ottawa 3y ago

I always wonder what would happen to most people if there was a house fire and all their phones and laptops burned at once. It’s not clear what the best security plan for that is (safety deposit box or fireproof safe seem like the best options).

wongarsu 3y ago
Most places will deactivate your account's 2FA if you can convincingly prove your identity. Of course hackers noticed that too, and might try to disable your 2FA once they have enough private information about you ...
- iforgotpassword 3y ago
  So, not Google.
thierrydamiba 3y ago
I tried to go phone free once. It was going well until I had to pay my car note.
eloisius 3y ago
I stress about getting my shit stolen every time I’m traveling and being completely locked out of everything. I stash an extra phone separate from my main phone every time I travel for that reason.
- lancesells 3y ago
  You have two phones with the same number? I didn't know that was possible.
  - eloisius 3y ago
    No, but most SMS-based 2fa is linked to my voip number, which then requires 2fa stored in a password manager.
    - lancesells 3y ago
      Makes sense. Thanks.
whamlastxmas 3y ago
Many services let you print 2fa codes. Keep them at a friends house

Kharacternyk 3y ago

The primary MFA device should be a Yubikey or something similar. Some of such keys are designed to be permanently plugged in. People use phones instead when they don't want to invest into a key or as a backup. EDIT: Or when OTP over SMS is the only MFA method supported as it likely is in your case.

alpaca128 3y ago
Does that also work if Google again randomly decides I have to use a specific one of multiple MFA choices? Recently it forced me to dig out my old phone I hadn't been using for months and boot it just to confirm a popup because it simply wouldn't let me select a different method. I don't know what would have happened if I'd lost the phone instead of just buying a new one after support ended. It didn't even let me enter my printed out backup codes, which kind of defeats the purpose. And most people aren't even using a free password manager, there's no chance they're going to buy and configure a Yubikey.

chankstein38 3y ago

I once ran over my phone with a mower. Tried to log onto Verizon's site to buy a new one. Please enter the code shown on your phone. No alternative way to sign in. Nothing. I contacted chat support and they wouldn't talk to me until I verified through my phone. Obviously impossible. I ended up chatting with sales support and begging each person to forward me to tech support until one finally took pity on me and forwarded me to someone who was cool enough to actually help me. What the hell.

Unfrozen0688 3y ago

>The place I worked then had forced Chrome's homepage to be some crappy SharePoint page. Getting into that required logging into our Microsoft account, and the checkbox to remember our login for five days literally never worked. Yes but, usually you are logged into your PC with the same account. So with SSO in Edge and Firefox, it would just log you in.

lloydatkinson 3y ago
Except it didn’t.
- Unfrozen0688 3y ago
  Yes because Chrome does not have Azure AD Windows account SSO :)