The recent Facebook data breach has more than 30 million Facebook users' personal data exposed.
Facebook has since then notified the individuals, informing them of their compromised data. The data exposed during the hack included the users' birthdate, education, gender, current city, hometown, relationship status, religion, work, username, device types used to access Facebook, the last 10 locations checked-in or tagged in, websites or pages followed, most recent searches and contact details.
Hackers have also attacked users who own or co-admin a Page or Facebook group, spamming malware and malicious links to the Facebook friends associated with the page or group.
You can also go ahead and take extra security precautions for your account by following certain steps to fortify the safety of your profile. This includes reviewing your privacy setting, double-checking the permissions of who has access to your account and your account's information, and activating two-factor authentication when logging in to devices.
What Is Facebook Two-Factor Authentication?
The two-factor authentication safety feature helps protect your Facebook account on top of your password, Facebook said. Once two-factor authentication is set up in your account, you'll be asked to enter a special login code or confirm your login attempt each time you try accessing your Facebook from a browser or mobie device that isn't recognized.
You simply need to prepare your mobile phone number before setting up Facebook's safety feature. If you prefer a physical security key, you can purchase one from your own third-party Universal 2nd Factor (U2F) or FIDO2 security key. You can also download a third-party authentication app like Google Authenticator or LastPass before getting started.
You will also be able to receive alerts when someone tries to log in to your account from a location, browser, or mobile device that the system does not recognize.
How To Activate Two-Factor Authentication on Facebook
To turn on and manage the two-factor authentication safety feature, head over your Security and login settings. Scroll down the options and select "Use two-factor authentication" and tap on Edit.
From here, choose the security method you want to add and follow the on-screen instructions as it guides you by setting up the security method selected.
When setting up two-factor authentication on Facebook, you are given three security methods to choose from:
Security Key: this allows you to tap a small hardware device to a compatible device. It's a secure method as the key is in your physical possession and only you can authorize a login.
Login Codes: You can also generate login codes from a third-party authentication app such as Google Authenticator or LastPass.
SMS Codes: You can also have the login code sent to your mobile phone via text message. You can either use a mobile number that's already beed added to your account, or a new number.
When you've set up two-factor authentication, you will be asked to save the browser or mobile device you are using. By doing so, you won't have to enter a security code every time you log in to that browser or device.Do not click "Save this browser" if you are using a public computer or a computer shared by multiple individuals.
Adding that extra layer of security to your Facebook login ensures that unwanted attempts at entering your account can be thwarted and your data and your Facebook friends, are safe from any malicious actors.
