These days, it’s not a matter if your password will be breached but when. Major websites experience massive data breaches at an alarming rate. Have I Been Pwned currently has records from 543 sites comprising 11.4 billion accounts. This includes well-known names like Wattpad, MySpace, and Facebook. This is an 84% increase in the number of sites and a 115% increase in the number of accounts from when I published the first version of this article in 2018.

Password breaches are a cause for embarrassment. They are talked about in hushed tones just like finding mice in your home or having your credit card declined. They don’t need to be, though. They are part of the online experience associated with modern cyber life.

Instead of being embarrassed, take steps to minimize the impact that a data breach has on your life.

One of the best ways to do this is to enable two-factor (or multi-factor) authentication on the accounts that you use on a regular basis. Adding a second form of authentication (typically in the fashion of a code generated by or sent to a device you own) can ensure that no one accesses your accounts, even if they have your passwords.

Here you will find step-by-step instructions on how to configure two-factor authentication via your web browser on some of Internet’s biggest social media networks in honor of #SocialMediaDay.

TikTok

  • For this app, we’ll use the mobile settings rather than the browser settings. Click on Me at the bottom of the screen followed by the 3 dots at the top on your profile screen.
  • Select Security and login from the menu that appears
  • Select 2-step verification
  • Select a method and click Turn on.

Instagram

  • For this app, we’ll once again use the mobile settings rather than the browser (Read more...)