What Is Two Factor Authentication (2FA)?

Two-factor authentication (2FA) is a security mechanism that requires a person to provide two different authentication factors to verify their identity. Most 2FA checks ask the user to enter a password as the first factor and then provide a second unique identifier, such as a security token, code sent to a specific mobile phone, or biometric data (face or fingerprint scan). Other common names for 2FA are two-step verification and dual-factor authentication.