Instagram adds support for two-factor authentication with apps

Instagram has started adding two-factor authentication using third-party apps such as Google Authenticator. In the coming weeks, the functionality should be available worldwide to all Instagram users.

In an announcement, Instagram describes what users must do to log in with two-step authentication through an app. An Authentication App setting will appear in the settings menu and if users have already installed an authentication app, it will be detected and a code will be sent to it. Users who do not yet have an app for two-factor authentication will be redirected to the App Store or the Google Play Store.

That Instagram would come up with an alternative to two-factor authentication with SMS was already apparent last month when a developer discovered references in the code. Instagram then confirmed that it was working on the functionality. The login method with two-factor authentication via an app is more secure than using SMS to send the code. The American NIST already said in 2016 that it considers SMS unsuitable for authentication purposes.

Furthermore, Instagram is going to add an About This Account section to popular accounts with many followers. There, users can see when the account was taken into use and from which country the account comes. It is also visible whether the account has adopted a different name in the past year and it is shown which advertisements the account currently has in circulation.

Instagram says it is doing so because there would be a demand for a better understanding of accounts that reach many people, especially those that share information with a political or social message.