SEATTLE – You can now add an extra level of security to your Amazon account. Amazon is offering a new security option called two-factor authentication, The Verge noticed on Wednesday.
The Seattle-based online retail giant made no official announcement and did not immediately respond to CNET’s request for confirmation and comment. But the option can be enabled now in users’ account settings.
Two-factor authentication tries to ensure that you are the owner of an online account by requiring two methods of identification when you log in — typically your password and some type of code or PIN that you receive on your mobile phone.
Breaches have become all too common for companies entrusted with consumers’ personal information. Retail giant Target, for instance, was hit by a hack in late 2013 that affected as many as 110 million customers. A hack against fellow retailer Home Depot in mid-2014 exposed 56 million unique credit cards.
This story was written by Lance Whitney of CNET.
