How to choose the best Authenticator app: Google vs 2Stable?

As our lives and day-to-day functions move increasingly online, keeping our personal information secure is more important than ever. Passwords can be forgotten or compromised and multi-factor authentication (MFA) or two-factor authentication 2FA helps to prevent private data from getting into the wrong hands. In this post, I will try to analyze the two Authenticator apps, Google & 2Stable.

What is multi-factor authentication (MFA)?
There are numerous factors of multi-factor authentication:

What the user knows: This includes security questions or PINs, wherein the user is the only one who knows the answer.
What the user has: This includes mobile phones where it can give codes or a one-time password or even smart cards.
What the user is: This includes a part of the human body such as fingerprints or facial recognition.
The combination of two or all these types creates the multi-factor authentication method, and this is where the authenticator app comes into play.

How does Authenticator app work?
Authenticator is an app that generates secure two-factor authentication (2FA) codes for your accounts. When you set up your account with two-factor authentication (2FA), you will receive a secret key to enter into the Authenticator, usually, the key is in a QR code form. This establishes a secure connection between the Authenticator and your account. After you enable the 2FA for your account, the next time when you log in to your online account and enter your username and password, you will be prompted to introduce a specific time-based 6 or 8-digit code from your authenticator app on your device. Entering the security code displayed on the authenticator app will give you access to your online account (Gmail, Office 365, Dropbox, Facebook, etc.). Even if someone steals or guesses your password, without the code displayed on your authenticator app that person will not be able to login to your account.

NOTE: If you will lose access to your codes from Authenticator app, you won't be able to access your accounts. And for this reason, it's very important to backup your data in case you lose your device or switch to a new one.

What are the differences between Authenticator by 2Stable and Google Authenticator?

• 2Stable Authenticator can synchronize all your accounts on multiple devices, while Google Authenticator only supports 1 device.
• 2Stable offers a backup feature essential when the device is lost or stolen, while Google Authenticator doesn't.
• Google Authenticator is free of charge, while 2Stable Authenticator costs 4,99$/year to unlock all features.
• 2Stable supports custom icons that make it easier to locate each account and code, which Google doesn’t have.
• Google Authenticator is available on Android & iOS, while 2Stable Authenticator only for Apple devices.
• 2Stable Authenticator supports Mac and Apple Watch, while Google Authenticator doesn't.

No matter what app you will choose, it is vital to enable two-step verification for your online accounts, until is not too late.

Links:
2Stable Authenticator: https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1538761576?pt=122171064&ct=IndieHackers&mt=8

Google Authenticator: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/google-authenticator/id388497605