Tesla caught late in rolling out verification process

Tesla is to soon roll out its two-factor authentication for its mobile app. CEO Elon Musk has admitted that the company was ‘embarrassingly late’ rolling out the security layer.

“Sorry, this is embarrassingly late. Two-factor authentication via sms or authenticator app is going through final validation right now,” Musk wrote Friday in response to a question from a Twitter follower.

Not perfectly at first, but yes. Will take maybe a year or so to get really good at roundabouts worldwide. The world has a zillion weird corner cases.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 14, 2020

However, Tesla has not said whether the two-factor tool will rely on SMS or a phone app. Musk said the final validation was for SMS “or” authenticator app, a statement that leaves that critical question unanswered.

It was in April that Musk had said that the additional security layer was “coming soon.” He said Tesla would add two-factor authentication back in May 2019. But that ‘soon’ did not arrive.

The security layer on the Tesla mobile app is very important as the app is a critical tool for owners, giving them control over numerous functions on their vehicles. When Bluetooth is enabled, the Tesla app allows drivers to use their phone as a key to Tesla’s newer vehicle models. The app also lets the user remotely lock and unlock the doors, trunk and frunk, turn on the HVAC system, monitor and control charging, locate the vehicle and schedule service. These are just a few of the capabilities.

Two-factor authentication or two-step verification is a critical way to verify that the real account holder — or car owner — is logging in and not a hacker

These days, two-factor authentication is common and widely employed to stop hackers from using stolen passwords to break into users’ accounts.