For quite some time, I wonder how it is possible that Tesla, when implementing a security measure that free Internet services have already offered for years, has arrived (or rather is arriving) so inexplicably late. So much, so late, that Elon Musk himself, founder and CEO of the company, has recognized in a tweet that Tesla is embarrassingly late when it comes to implementing two-step authentication (2FA).
Fortunately, according to that message, the implementation of two-step authentication is in the final phase of validation. This would follow what was announced by Tesla or, more specifically, by Musk, who already in April of this year stated that this security system would arrive soon. The bad part? That actually these plans have been coming for more than a year, back in May 2019. More than a year to implement a security measure like this, I don’t know, it seems like a long time.
When the bluetooth function is enabled on the smartphone, the Tesla app allows drivers to use their phone as a key to the latest models from the manufacturer. The application also allows the user to remotely lock and unlock the doors, the trunk, as well as activate multiple functions, schedule certain tasks. Too many features not to shield its operation with at least two-factor authentication.
These days, two-factor authentication is a very common security measure, and is widely used to prevent cybercriminals from using stolen passwords to access the accounts of users whose credentials have been compromised. It is, as I said at the beginning, a security measure that many services have offered for years, and there are more and more cases, such as Epic Games, in which it is mandatory. Which is why it’s surprising that Tesla is so late.
What is not clear with Tesla, as is deduced from Musk’s tweet, is whether its two-factor authentication system will be based on SMS, on a smartphone application (such as Google Authenticator, Authy or, perhaps, some own development). And it is that the employer cites both systems, without making it clear whether users will be able to choose the possibility they prefer or, on the contrary, one system will prevail over the other. However, the fact that I mention both, It suggests that in the end both options will be offered.
Sorry, this is embarrassingly late. Two factor authentication via sms or authenticator app is going through final validation right now.
– Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 14, 2020
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