Reddit adds 2-factor authentication for all

Reddit has finally joined other major web properties in adding two-factor authentication for all users. It’s been available for mods and some testers for a while, but this is the first time the vast multitudes of redditors will have access to it.

Turn it on and you’ll have to enter a six-digit code sent to your phone whenever you have a new login attempt. You’ll need Google Authenticator, Authy, or any TOTP-supporting auth app — texting codes is no longer recommended (and really, it was always a bad idea).

There’s not much to setting it up: go into the password/email area of the site’s preferences once you’ve logged in on a desktop browser. Enable two-factor authentication and follow the instructions.

Now, this may be a problem for power users, who might have trouble switching between the one they use for ordinary browsing and the one they use to post racist comments on every post they can, or the one they use to vehemently disagree with a headline without reading the article. But that’s the price of security.