Google updates 2FA authenticator app
It’s been a long time coming since the first details were leaked back in August, 2024, but the new Google Authenticator app has now arrived for users to download. With 100 million plus users already, Google Authenticator is one of the most popular 2FA code-generating apps out there, and for good reason. Will this update make it even better? Here’s what you need to know.
The Problem With Authenticator Apps, Google Aside
Let me tell you a little story about two-factor code authenticating apps: once upon a time there was a 2FA app, it sucked. The end. Seriously, that pretty much sums up the experience of large numbers of 2FA code-generating app users, myself included. I should clarify that most do a sterling job at the functional requirement of generating the code, I have no qualms about that, but equally, most really such when it comes to transferring your codebase over to a new device when the need arises. A need such as moving to a new smartphone or having the one with the code app on lost or stolen. I have long since recommended two apps that take the pain out of this process, Authy which I can no longer recommend since they killed desktop support (I’m currently still in the process of moving my multitude codes to the Apple Passwords app, which I now recommend instead for Apple users – While you can use Google Authenticator on iOS you can’t on a macOS device, and device-interoperability is vital here) and Google Authenticator. If I weren’t as invested in the Apple ecosystem alongside the Google one as I am, I’d likely be using it. That likelihood would have just increased with the release of Google Authenticator version 7.
Google Authenticator already has more than 100 million downbloads from the Play Store
Google Releases Newly Updated Authenticator Code-Generating App
As first teased way back in August, Google Authenticator 7, with its Material 3 design overhaul, has finally arrived in the Play Store. Are the changes, though, more than a case of being cosmetic? Given that Google rarely updates its Authenticator app, you have to look back to April 2023 for the last time, you would expect there to be more than minor tweaks. However, the “if it ain’t broken” mantra should always sound loud when it comes to and security software, in my never humble opinion, and that appears to hold true here.
The new privacy screen is a good addition, one that can be enabled to demand a PIN or biometric approval before anyone can access 2FA authentication codes, but that’s about it. The unlock settings for this can be configured between 10 seconds, 60 seconds or 10 minutes. Beyond this, unless you count a search ability for your accounts with 2FA, instead of the existing scrolling option, there’s not really anything new. Which is a good thing as the current feature set is what makes Google Authenticator stand out in a somewhat crowded market full of “meh” grade applications.
Now, if only someone could persuade Google to make a macOS compatible version…