Gmail will stop using SMS for two-factor authentication: what will be replaced

Instead of SMS, there will be QR codes that Google will send to users to scan with their phones. The smartphone dependency is still there, but now you won't have to rely on the weak security of SMS messages, writes Engadget.

Using two-factor authentication via SMS is better than nothing, but text messages aren't as secure as other methods. Criminals can intercept your message simply by convincing your carrier to port your number to a new phone. They can even make money off each SMS message by forcing your provider to send multiple SMS messages to a number they control in a process called "traffic pumping," Google says.

Given the volume of SMS messages the company sends both to verify users and to make sure people aren't creating mass accounts to send spam, it's not hard to see how much of a problem SMS can be.

Ultimately, the goal for Google and other similar companies is to use keys and do away with passwords altogether, but implementation is slow, and making the current, much more familiar process secure still makes sense.

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