In 2017, Goggle distributed over 85,000 physical security keys to all of their employees. The results have been outstanding, with no employees reporting any successful takeovers of work-related accounts.

This which was reported by Brian Krebs, security journalist, who also highlighted how a physical security key can secure anyone’s online account from getting breached.  A password are not enough to keep a hacker determined to break into your account. The most common way this is done is through a phishing email to deceive you into replying with the information.

However, a security key offers an additional level of protection by requiring both the password (something you know) and the physical key (something you have).

This is call Two-Factor Authentication, where you need both the password and another piece of information to access your account. The biggest internet services, such as Google, Facebook and Twitter, actually already offer this security solution and you can use it now for free.

“The YubiKey 5C NFC is one of our most sought-after security keys,” said Yubico Chief Product Officer Guido Appenzeller in a press statement. “It’s compatible with a majority of modern-day computers and mobile phones and works well across a range of legacy and modern applications.”

Of all the various 2FA second factors — texted codes, authenticator apps that generate codes, push notifications, and so on — hardware security keys are arguably the most secure. 

To add a security key (such as a YubiKey) to Facebook, you’ll need to be using the latest version of Chrome or Opera connected to your Facebook account.

• Go to your Security and Login Settings.
• Scroll down to Use two-factor authentication and click Edit. You may be asked to re-enter your Facebook password at this point.
• Go to Security Key and click Setup.
• Follow the on-screen instructions.

If you successfully added your security key, it will appear with the name you’ve given it in your Security Key section.