Several high-profile hacking cases in recent months probably have many wondering if anything stored online or in the cloud is truly safe. One company trying to allay those fears is Dropbox, the cloud-based storage company.
The company has added support for USB-based keys that make it harder for hackers to access your account. Universal 2nd Factor (U2F) security keys are an extra option for two-factor authentication. Rather than receiving a code on your smartphone, for example, you can insert a key via your device’s USB port after entering your Dropbox password.
Dropbox added two-factor authentication in 2012, just after being hit by a spam attack carried out by stolen passwords. Two-factor authentication provides users with an extra layer of protection by requiring a second form of authentication, besides their password. Typically, people will have a six-digit code sent to their mobile phones after entering their normal password. So if your password is stolen, the hackers will not be able to access to your account unless they also have your phone, or whatever secondary form of authentication you’ve selected.
To get started, you’ll need to get a security key that follows an open standard called “FIDO Universal 2nd Factor (U2F)” from the FIDO Alliance.
Once you have a key, go to the Security tab in your Dropbox account settings and click “Add” next to Security keys. Currently, U2F is only supported for dropbox.com using the Chrome web browser. If you’re signing in from a device or platform that doesn’t support U2F, you can use two-step verification through text message or an authenticator app. Once enabled, you can sign in to your personal or business Dropbox account, as well as any other service that supports U2F, such as Google apps.
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