Twitter has announced it will now charge its users for text-based two-factor authentication (2FA), meaning only Twitter Blue subscribers will be able to utilize the security feature after March 30.
Twitter shared the news in a blog, claiming, "we have seen phone-number based 2FA be used - and abused - by bad actors. So starting today, we will no longer allow accounts to enroll in the text message/SMS method of 2FA unless they are Twitter Blue subscribers."
Effective March 20, 2023, only Twitter Blue subscribers will be able to use text messages as their two-factor authentication method. Other accounts can use an authentication app or security key for 2FA. Learn more here:https://t.co/wnT9Vuwh5n
— Twitter Support (@TwitterSupport) February 18, 2023
For those unfamiliar, two-factor authentication is another way to secure your account, as you need a randomly generated code alongside your password to log in. For those who already have this enabled on Twitter but aren't Twitter Blue subscribers, you will be able to continue using the feature until March 20, 2023. If you don't currently have it enabled, you will now have to subscribe to Twitter Blue to use it.
Twitter CEO Elon Musk hasn't said too much on the issue yet, but he did respond with "yup" to the following tweet by T(w)itter Takeover News;
"NEWS: Twitter changed its policies because regarding SMS based 2FA because Telcos Used Bot Accounts to Pump 2FA SMS. They were losing $60mn/yr on scam SMS."
As noted by SocialProof Security CEO Rachel Tobac, Twitter's own Account Security report from July 2022 states only 2.6% of active Twitter accounts have 2FA enabled. Of those 2.6%, 74.4% of them use the SMS/text-message option, while 28.9% use an authentication app and 0.5% use a security key.
If you don't plan on subscribing to Twitter Blue, users can still "consider using an authentication app or security key method instead" to secure your account.
Twitter Blue costs $8/month on the web and $11/month on iOS and Android in the US, and it gets you a blue checkmark, the ability to edit tweets, 1080p video uploads, and will in the future let you "rocket to the top of replies, mentions, and search" and "see half the ads."
This is but another entry in the story of Elon Musk's Twitter buyout, and follows issues in November 2022 where users began reporting issues with 2FA, including how long it took to receive login codes.
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Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.
