Don’t Give Hackers a Key: Enable Two-Factor Authentication

You wouldn’t leave your car unlocked at the mall. Don’t leave your domain name account unlocked either.
Setting up two-factor authentication, or 2FA, on all of your online accounts makes it harder for hackers to access your data.
Below we’ll take a closer look at two-factor authentication and how you can enable it on your Namecheap account.

Domain Theft is a Growing Issue

As the value of many domain names have risen, so too have the number of domain thefts and hacked websites.
While there’s no definitive count of the number of domain thefts each year, many people have had to turn to the courts and other ways to try to recover domain names.
Thieves will often compromise a domain owner’s email account as the first step in a theft. Once they have access to an email account, they just have to submit a password reset in order to gain control of the domain registrar and/or hosting account.
From there, they quickly transfer domain names to another registrar (usually overseas) where they are difficult to get back, or they update the login information for a website to lock out the rightful owner.
In the case of domains, perpetrators sometimes even sell the hot merchandise before they can be tracked down, making it very difficult to recover a lost domain.

A Simple Theft-Prevention Trick

One way to reduce the chances of becoming a victim of domain theft or website hack is to enable two-factor authentication on your Namecheap account.
As the name implies, you need two forms of authentication before Namecheap will let you access your account when you use this service.
The first is your regular password. The second is a one-time code sent via SMS text when you try to log in.
If a thief gets control of your email, they will still have trouble accessing your Namecheap account unless they also have your mobile phone.

How to Enable Two-Factor Authentication

To help you set up your two-factor service, Namecheap offers a quick tutorial.
It takes about 60 seconds to set it up. Once you’ve set it up, log out of your Namecheap account so you can see how it works.
After logging out, try logging in again using your account username and password. After submitting this you should see this screen:

Click the button “Send Security Code” and you’ll receive a text message within seconds. Just enter the six-digit code on the next screen and you can access your account.
And be sure to check out our other tips on keeping your Namecheap account secure.

Andrew Allemann is editor of Domain Name Wire, the longest-running blog covering the business of domain names. Domain Name Wire has covered the business of domain name investing for over ten years.