Multi-Factor Authenticators
Hardware Security Keys¶
YubiKey¶
The YubiKeys are among the most popular security keys. Some YubiKey models have a wide range of features such as: Universal 2nd Factor (U2F), FIDO2 and WebAuthn, Yubico OTP, Personal Identity Verification (PIV), OpenPGP, TOTP and HOTP authentication.
One of the benefits of the YubiKey is that one key can do almost everything (YubiKey 5), you could expect from a hardware security key. We do encourage you to take the quiz before purchasing in order to make sure you make the right choice.
The comparison table shows the features and how the YubiKeys compare. We highly recommend that you select keys from the YubiKey 5 Series.
YubiKeys can be programmed using the YubiKey Manager or YubiKey Personalization Tools. For managing TOTP codes, you can use the Yubico Authenticator. All of Yubico's clients are open source.
For models which support HOTP and TOTP, there are 2 slots in the OTP interface which could be used for HOTP and 32 slots to store TOTP secrets. These secrets are stored encrypted on the key and never expose them to the devices they are plugged into. Once a seed (shared secret) is given to the Yubico Authenticator, it will only give out the six-digit codes, but never the seed. This security model helps limit what an attacker can do if they compromise one of the devices running the Yubico Authenticator and make the YubiKey resistant to a physical attacker.
Warning
The firmware of YubiKey is not open source and is not updatable. If you want features in newer firmware versions, or if there is a vulnerability in the firmware version you are using, you would need to purchase a new key.
Nitrokey¶
Nitrokey has a security key capable of FIDO2 and WebAuthn called the Nitrokey FIDO2. For PGP support, you need to purchase one of their other keys such as the Nitrokey Start, Nitrokey Pro 2 or the Nitrokey Storage 2.
The comparison table shows the features and how the Nitrokey models compare. The Nitrokey 3 listed will have a combined feature set.
Nitrokey models can be configured using the Nitrokey app.
For the models which support HOTP and TOTP, there are 3 slots for HOTP and 15 for TOTP. Some Nitrokeys can act as a password manager. They can store 16 different credentials and encrypt them using the same password as the OpenPGP interface.
Warning
While Nitrokeys do not release the HOTP/TOTP secrets to the device they are plugged into, the HOTP and TOTP storage is not encrypted and is vulnerable to physical attacks. If you are looking to store HOTP or TOTP secrets, we highly recommend that you use a YubiKey instead.
Warning
Resetting the OpenPGP interface on a Nitrokey will also make the password database inaccessible.
The Nitrokey Pro 2, Nitrokey Storage 2, and the upcoming Nitrokey 3 supports system integrity verification for laptops with the Coreboot + Heads firmware.
Nitrokey's firmware is open source, unlike the YubiKey. The firmware on modern NitroKey models (except the NitroKey Pro 2) is updatable.
Criteria¶
Please note we are not affiliated with any of the projects we recommend. In addition to our standard criteria, we have developed a clear set of requirements to allow us to provide objective recommendations. We suggest you familiarize yourself with this list before choosing to use a project, and conduct your own research to ensure it's the right choice for you.
Minimum Requirements¶
- Must use high quality, tamper resistant hardware security modules.
- Must support the latest FIDO2 specification.
- Must not allow private key extraction.
- Devices which cost over $35 must support handling OpenPGP and S/MIME.
Best-Case¶
Our best-case criteria represents what we would like to see from the perfect project in this category. Our recommendations may not include any or all of this functionality, but those which do may rank higher than others on this page.
- Should be available in USB-C form-factor.
- Should be available with NFC.
- Should support TOTP secret storage.
- Should support secure firmware updates.
Authenticator Apps¶
Authenticator Apps implement a security standard adopted by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) called Time-based One-time Passwords, or TOTP. This is a method where websites share a secret with you which is used by your authenticator app to generate a six (usually) digit code based on the current time, which you enter while logging in for the website to check. Typically these codes are regenerated every 30 seconds, and once a new code is generated the old one becomes useless. Even if a hacker gets one six-digit code, there is no way for them to reverse that code to get the original secret or otherwise be able to predict what any future codes might be.
We highly recommend that you use mobile TOTP apps instead of desktop alternatives as Android and iOS have better security and app isolation than most desktop operating systems.
ente Auth¶
ente Auth is a free and open-source app which stores and generates TOTP tokens. It can be used with an online account to backup and sync your tokens across your devices (and access them via a web interface) in a secure, end-to-end encrypted fashion. It can also be used offline on a single device with no account necessary.
Downloads
Aegis Authenticator (Android)¶
Aegis Authenticator is a free and open-source app for Android to manage your 2-step verification tokens for your online services. Aegis Authenticator operates completely offline/locally, but includes the option to export your tokens for backup unlike many alternatives.
Downloads
Criteria¶
Please note we are not affiliated with any of the projects we recommend. In addition to our standard criteria, we have developed a clear set of requirements to allow us to provide objective recommendations. We suggest you familiarize yourself with this list before choosing to use a project, and conduct your own research to ensure it's the right choice for you.
- Source code must be publicly available.
- Must not require internet connectivity.
- Must not sync to a third-party cloud sync/backup service.
- Optional E2EE sync support with OS-native tools is acceptable, e.g. encrypted sync via iCloud.
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