Facebook to bolster mobile login with physical security feature

Beginning next year, Facebook will allow users to protect
their account with a hardware key to log in on the site’s mobile app, Reuter
reported on Tuesday.

The social media firm already has the same security option
to log in on the desktop version.

Users could purchase a hardware key from retailers, and
register it with Facebook, the company said, confirming an earlier report by
news website Axios, the Reuter wrote.

The California-based company also plans to expand its
Facebook-Protect feature, which it currently provides to government accounts,
like those of election candidates, to more profiles globally.

According to the report, it may extend the feature to
journalists and human rights activists who sometimes are vulnerable to hacking
and other pressures.

The company plans the move keeping in mind the July hacking of
several high-profile accounts on Twitter, which included accounts of Tesla boss
Elon Musk and President-elect Joe Biden.

Also read: Twitter followers of US govt accounts won’t transfer to Biden

Currently available in the United States, Facebook Protect
offers a way for politicians, government agencies and election staff to set up
additional security provisions such as two-factor authentication and real-time
monitoring for potential hacking threats, the agency wrote.