Verification codes are something that have become part of the login routine for years now..so much in fact, we hardly think about them… we just do it. This form of Two Factor Authentication, or, 2FA to the kids and nerds, is a great thing but in order to work at its best they need to be wrangled and bent them to our will.
With luck you’ll be doing the vast majority of your logging in whilst using your Mac because that big (or bigger) screen is still the most comfortable way to pay bills, sell your old Windows PC on eBay or, in my wife’s case, engage a hitman.
Trouble is, when you log into a website that uses 2FA the code is often sent to an iPhone and then you have to go and retrieve it and its often not where you left it or, in my wife’s case, in her husband’s jacket pocket who is inconveniently still bound and gagged in the boot of the car.
It would be much better if the code arrived on your Mac, was recognised as a code by Safari and then automatically deleted so as to not clutter up your iPhone.
Well thats not pie in the sky, it is very doable and here is how it is done.
First, let’s start with the way most people are doing it today.
As an. Example, you are logging onto actewagl to pay an electricity bill.
You, hopefully by now because you’ve had your passwords audited by us, navigate to the website and your login details appear automatically. You complete the login and then it wants to send you a code. If it is to your email address to need to go into Mail, find the email, copy the code and paste or type it into the nagging field before getting to your account.
Similarly, if it is to your phone you need to get the phone, open messages and type in the code. If you are really on the ball you’ll delete the message or email when you are finished but most forget until there are hundreds of these things clogging up each device.
There is a better and, if I can deploy my inner nerd for just a moment, a must cooler way to do all of this.
The first thing you need to do is prep your iPhone, Mac or iPad.
To ensure that SMS and iMessages arrive on both your Mac and iPhone, you’ll need to enable a few key settings that sync your messages across devices. Just go through it step by step…its over in a few seconds.
On Your iPhone
1. Make sure you are signed into into your iCloud account
- Go to Settings > [Your Name]
- Make sure you’re signed in with your Apple ID – most of you will be. Your name is likely at the very top of the list. Tapping on your name will reveal the email address you are using to log into iCloud.
- This should be the same Apple ID used on your Mac – but we’ll get to that.
2. Enable iMessage
- Still in Settings, scroll to the bottom and click on Apps.
- Scroll to Messages
- Tap Send & Receive and confirm your phone number and Apple ID email are checked under “You can receive iMessages to and reply from”
3. Enable Text Message Forwarding
- Go to Settings > Messages > Text Message Forwarding
- Toggle ON for your Mac it will appear by name but if you don’t see this option, make sure both devices are signed into the same Apple ID and on the same Wi-Fi network
4. Enable Messages in iCloud (Optional but Recommended)
- Go to Settings > [Your Name] then iCloud then Show All and then Messages
- Toggle Messages ON
On Your Mac
1. Make sure you are signed into into your iCloud account
- Go to System Settings then Apple ID and make sure you’re signed in with the same Apple ID as your iPhone
2. Enable iMessage
- Open the Messages app (it will be in the Applications folder)
- Click in the the Messages menu in the top left hand corner and choose Settings then @iMessage
- Sign in with your Apple ID if prompted
- Under the You can be reached for messages at, make sure your phone number and email are selected
3. Enable Messages in iCloud (Optional)
- In Messages > Settings > iMessage, check Enable Messages in iCloud
- This keeps your message history synced across devices
4. Finally, make sure codes are removed once they are done with
Click the Apple menu and choose System Settings.
Go to General then Autofill & Passwords
Ensure that under the heading of Verification Codes ensure that Delete after use is turned on.
Now, what happens is this…
You open the ACTEW website and the Passwords app inserts your details and you are logged in.
When 2FA fires the code is send to your email or phone and the VERIFY dialog box sits here blank wait for you do something.
In a couple of seconds menu drops down containing the code and once you chose his you are logged in and the code is removed because it is now useless.
And just like that you are logged in and the codes removed from your Mac/iPhone to make rom for the next time.
