Late last year, Google announced that users whose account was ready would automatically move to 2-step verification (2SV). This was a move the company made to improve user security.
In a follow-up post, Google noted that this has resulted in an impressive reduction in compromised accounts.
In 2021, we auto-enrolled over 150 million people in two-step verification (2SV). As a result of this effort, we have seen a 50% decrease in accounts being compromised.
The full benefits of 2SV go beyond simple protection of your account, a fact anyone who has had an account compromised will attest to. The saving of time, headache and — if accounts or finances cannot be recovered — heartache is immeasurable.
The fact that Google is implementing steps like default 2SV shows how important it is. This is a timely reminder that users should turn on 2SV for all accounts that offer the feature. Not only that, grab yourself a hardware-based security key like a Yubikey for that extra little protection.
