How to protect your Roku account with two factor authentication

Four months into 2024, Roku has now reported multiple security breaches affecting customer accounts. The first breach affected 15,363 accounts and the second, discovered in the aftermath of the first breach, ultimately affected 576,000 accounts. While Roku was only able to identify a few hundred log-ins that were actually used for fraudulent activity, all customers who were impacted have had their passwords reset. Additionally, Roku says that all accounts will have two-factor authentication enabled.

Any kind of multifactor authentication will make the process of logging in take longer, but it’s one of a few guaranteed ways Roku can know that you’re actually the one accessing your account. That doesn’t mean it won’t come with a small learning curve for the uninitiated, or that it extends to Roku’s other services, however. Here’s how to use two-factor authentification on your Roku account and how to enable it in Roku’s smart home app too.

How to use Roku’s two-factor authentification

According to Roku’s announcement, with two-factor — or “two-step,” as Roku sometimes refers to it — now enabled, “the next time you attempt to log in to your Roku account online, a verification link will be sent to the email address associated with your account, and you will need to click the link in the email before you can access the account.” That email process is currently Roku’s sole option for two-factor authentification. When you try and log in online or into a new Roku device, a link will be sent to whatever email is associated with your account, and you then have to click to confirm that you’re logging in. If you don’t, or you don’t receive the email, you can try re-sending it or using the five-digit device ID associated with your Roku device.

There’s currently no option for using a code from a password manager, though there’s also no reason that it couldn’t be added in the future. What that does mean is that on top of making sure your Roku password is secure, you’ll also want to make sure your email password is secure, too.

How to enable two-factor authentification on the Roku Smart Home app

Interestingly, Roku’s Smart Home app is a different story. Roku first branched out into smart home tech in 2022 with things like video doorbells and smart lights. All of those gadgets are controlled and managed with the Roku Smart Home app. To protect your login and access to the smart home controls in the app, you can enable two-factor authentification and require entry of a code sent over SMS every time you have to log in to your account.

You should be prompted to turn two-factor authentification or two-step verification on when you first create an account or log in to the app. Here’s how to make sure its enabled:

1. Open the Roku Smart Home app.
2. Tap on Account.
3. Select Security and then tap Two-step verification.
4. Make sure Two-step verification is toggled to On.

You may be prompted to enter your phone number or make sure it’s up-to-date, but once you’ve confirmed that, you should be good to go for your next log in.

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