Help:Two-factor authentication: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 06:57, 2 January 2025

Revision as of 06:57, 2 January 2025

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{{seealso|:meta:Help:Two-factor authentication}}

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{{Infopage|H:2FA|WP:2FA}}

{{nutshell|Administrators and editors with advanced permissions should ideally enable two-factor authentication for account security, and can do so by following this guide.}}

{{warning|'''Particular attention''' should be paid to the section of this guide on [[H:SCRATCH|scratch codes]] — if you don't keep these codes and encounter a problem with your 2FA device, you will be locked out of your account.}}

[[File:Différents modèles de lecteurs de cartes bancaires.jpg|thumb|240px|2FA is like a software version of the [[security token]] devices used for online banking in some countries.]]

'''[[Multi-factor authentication|Two-factor authentication]]''' ('''2FA''') is a method of adding additional security to your account. The first "factor" is your usual password that is standard for any account. The second "factor" is a verification code retrieved from an app on a mobile device or computer. 2FA is conceptually similar to a [[security token]] device that banks in some countries require for [[online banking]]. Other names for 2FA systems include ''OTP'' (''[[one-time password]]'') and ''TOTP'' (''[[Time-based One-time Password algorithm]]'').

This guide explains how to enable and disable 2FA on Wikipedia for your account. This guide is about the TOTP method, see notes about WebAuthn below.

If you decide to enable 2FA, you may want to enable the option "Send password reset emails only when both email address and username are provided" in the first tab of [[Special:Preferences]].

== Securing your account ==

{{seealso|Wikipedia:User account security}}

[[File:Basic information in Wikipedia preferences.png|thumb|[[H:P|Preferences]] with button to enable 2FA]]

It is '''extremely important''' for administrators and editors with advanced permissions to keep their account secure. A number of Wikipedia administrators (including the co-founder, {{u|Jimbo Wales}}) have had their accounts compromised, which were then used to vandalise the encyclopedia. As well as causing widespread disruption, the affected administrators' accounts were locked until it was beyond doubt they had regained control.

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== Accessing 2FA ==

{{main article|m:Help:Two-factor authentication#Accounts affected}}

{{shortcut|H:ACCESS2FA}}

On the English Wikipedia, the following groups automatically have access to 2FA:

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* See also [[:meta:Help:Two-factor authentication|Metawiki help page]] for [[Wikipedia:Meta|Meta-Wiki]]'s overview of 2FA.

* There are many OTP clients available (c.f. [[comparison of OTP applications]], see the publisher for application specific assistance.

==Notes==

{{reflist}}

{{Wikipedia accounts|collapsed}}