They can even be different apps, although that makes synchronizing them much harder. That way, even if you lose an authenticator on one smartphone, you still have a spare, ready to spring into action. Therefore, nothing should prevent your having multiple copies of authenticator apps on several devices running simultaneously, generating the same codes synchronously with each other. Install the authenticator app on several devicesĪuthenticator apps generate one-time codes based on a secret key and the current time. All that remains is to take a screenshot and save the image securely in your password manager. After that, a huge QR code containing all of the selected tokens appears on the screen. In any case, exporting tokens in Google Authenticator is very straightforward: Click on the three dots at the top of the screen, select Export accounts, and mark the accounts you need. Alas, developers of the alternative authenticator apps don’t make life easier for such defectors. But the cloud is of no help to those who already use Google Authenticator and are looking to try an alternative by quickly transferring existing tokens to a new app. Perhaps the developers of the other apps think their cloud-sync feature does the job just as well. Export tokens already created in the authenticatorįor some unfathomable reason, of all the authenticator apps we checked out, only Google Authenticator provides an option to export tokens that are already created in the app and import them on another device. Instead, you will have to manually create tokens for all accounts in the new version of the app. Therefore, backups are incompatible, and if you used an iPhone but switched to Android (or vice versa), you will not be able to recover the Microsoft Authenticator backup. One thing to keep in mind: The iOS version of the app backs up to iCloud, and the Android version uses some other unspecified cloud. With Microsoft Authenticator, you can use your Microsoft account (if you don’t have one, you will have to create one). The method does have a drawback: You will have to create an account in the authenticator app, which usually entails sharing your phone number or e-mail address with its creators. Most popular authenticator apps (Google Authenticator is an exception) let you store secret keys in the cloud and automatically sync authenticators across devices. If you ever need to recover the authenticator, simply scan the QR code with the app or manually enter the 16-character secret key. Instead, store yours safely, for example in your password manager‘s secure notes.Īlternatively, you can save the QR code as an image and safely store it in Kaspersky Password Manager. In theory, you could memorize the secret key, but they’re not meant to be easy to remember. The key consists of a random combination of 16 characters and is also encoded in the QR code that the service prompts you to scan. When you set up authentication, the app creates a secret key on which to base new, one-time codes. Manually store secret keys or QR codes in a safe place To do that, you have several choices, and you can proceed based on your personal preferences and what authenticator app you use. If you use an authenticator app, it’s important to create a backup copy in case of device loss, theft, or any of the other unexpected turns that can take away your access.
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