SMS is short for Short Message Service. Some websites offer this to double-check that you are who you say you are. So, it's a form of 2-factor authentication (2FA). It's not the best 2FA method available, as explained in this episode of Threat Wire.
A better way is to use an app which offers you a one-time password (OTP). I know of 2 apps that can be used for it. One is Google Authenticator, and the other is Authy. As is explained on this page on Authy's website, it has a few advantages over Google Authenticator:
Aside from the vulnerability that Shannon Morse explained on Threat Wire, something that has been happening to me recently has revealed another vulnerability. If you have to log into a website secured by SMS and the code you need does not arrive, then you can't log into that website. This is what's keeping me from using some services, which explains the title of this post.
I've been in contact with Apple's customer support - yes, I have an iPhone - which is how it was discovered that a text message I need is simply not arriving. So, I'm now in contact with my mobile provider Simyo, in hopes of finding out what's keeping this message from being sent out or reaching my phone.
As always, I hope you enjoyed reading this blog post. If you have any questions or comments, then please let me know in the form down below.
Please fill in all three fields or the form will not be sent. Your comment will not appear right away.