How to turn off two factor authentication?

R.W.R wrote:

The supposed "extra layer" of security is only there to appease the paranoid, it won't stop determined thieves.

Of course it won't, and that's not the intention of 2FA. The secondary market is loaded with iOS devices that are activation-locked, so clearly thieves still steal iOS devices and sell them to the unwitting.

The intent of 2FA is to keep the thief out of your personal business, and 2FA accomplishes that so well that the US government can't break it ... and I don't think a "determined thief" has more ability than say our NSA, CIA, ...

I met the deadline and managed to turn it off... but now I have to jump through more hoops to get to my information. I'll just do what I've always done in the past, buy another external hard drive and forget about apple for another ten years.

It accomplishes it so well it's keeping me out of it, I don't need or want the extra hassle in my life. What's next 3FA or 4FA or maybe 767358576FA? Abstinence might be the best way to stay safe... ya that's the ticket... keep your iphone in your pants and you won't have to worry.

pacetoys wrote:

if you misplace your iphone you cant find it because the find feature in icloud sends verification code to the phone you have misplaced

Which is why when you set up 2 FA you were instructed to set up more than one way of getting authorization codes. These other ways can be any other Internet-capable Apple product (Mac, iPad, iPod touch) or any phone number, including Android phones and landlines. You can still do this by logging in to https://appleid.apple.com. You will still need an authorization code to do that.

Then something is wrong. I have 7 Apple devices (5 iOS and 2 MacOS), and a Google Voice number set up in my AppleID trusted devices and trusted contacts. I normally receive codes at all 6 Apple devices via the default iCloud notification system. But I have also tested my GV number and I can receive codes via SMS and voice there.

If you’ve set up the devices properly for your AppleID, and verified your non-Apple device trusted numbers, then 2FA works just fine on all.

proaudioguy wrote:

Not accurate. I have about 10 devices in that list and only 2 of them get the authorization code and those are both my wife's.

Like Michael, I get my codes on all the devices I've authorized as trusted: my iPhone, iPad and Mac and, if I request the code, on my work landline and my GV number. All just as I've set them up.

Starting a new Apple ID is not the same thing as turning off 2FA. Two-factor authentication isn't attached to a device but to the Apple ID. And, no, you can't keep content purchased under the original Apple ID. Any purchased/downloaded content stays forever attached to the Apple ID under which it was downloaded.

By the way, 2FA is enabled by default on new Apple IDs so, should you decide to abandon an original Apple ID and all the purchases connected to it, remember to turn it off.

You have not turned anything OFF. You’ve simple abandoned one AppleID (which still has 2 FA activation on it) and everything you’ve ever purchased or downloaded with that AppleID to create a new AppleID. How is this a solution for anything? You now have to pay again for all your purchased content. And you cannot update any apps until you do purchase them again with your new AppleID.

You also cannot use advanced features like messages in iCloud with that new AppleID as those services require 2FA (and there will be more and more requiring it over time).

I don't have a choice to re set a backup email in iCloud now. When I log in I'm asked for the code sent to my phone. My phone is broken and the screen does not work. Now what? I can't get my replacement phone until find my iphone is turned off, yet I can't get in to turn it off without the code. Why can't we call Apple and answer our security questions / give set up information to obtain a code? there is a serious flaw in this method.

Why?

Use a decorated password on older OS's

password followed by verification code in the password field.

So if password is Apple123! and verification code is 456789, you enter Apple123!456789 in the password field on Apple TV.

Wow. (Twice today)

I've seen other posts in ASC from people whose Apple ID was hacked, but none quite as extensive as this. And none of them would have happened if the victim had 2 factor authentication.

That story is from 2012. It was big news at the time. But, as you read, it used to be fairly easy to get your password reset over the phone, even from Apple (who had some culpability in that incident). It makes it quite easy to understand why Apple tightened things up to the degree they did.

Then you will never buy another Apple product. Bye bye. And soon you won’t be able to buy any smartphone because they are all going that way. Google is already 3/4 of the way there with Android and 100% of the way with Gmail business accounts.

This sounds great for the individual, but is not good for business. We have 50 phones out in the field that we issue to staff who have no smart phone and hence limited technical skills. These are all dispatched with the same apple ID. Great to configure a new phone and restore from backup so settings etc. are uniform, however when it comes to having to upgrade an app (we only have the one (ours), the 2fa becomes a significant handicap. Having a pop-up on another device is useless when the next nearest device is 200km away, of the backup text option goes to a different phone.

Should have the option to turn this off and let the user decide. Not all users need to be protected from themselves, so set the default to be 2fa enabled, but then let the user manually disable if the need arises.

Ah yes, but we do not have phone capabilities enabled. These are simply iphones with a data only sim installed distributed to staff (cleaners) to utilise a single app. They are issues as a business tool to users as a last resort. We have some 1200 staff and issues only around 50 phones, and these users would have an average age of around 65+. The iPhones were considered the simplist option for these users. Perhaps we are using the device outside the scope of Apple's target customer.

It is easy to sit in your ivory tower and preach, but you need to look at operational issues with users who are not computer literate.

Central management is great if you want to buy your hardware from apple, but we are distributing units (refurbished) that cost $300 as opposed to new units that cost $1800. 50 units with a $1500 difference is a lot of cash (you can do the maths). As it is, distributing $300 units, covering the costs of the telco wipes out the profit margins for these remote locations.

Yep a cost of doing business, but you need to understand the situation and operational requirements.

Our issues could be averted if there was not the need to use 2FA is upgrade the existing apps installed on the phone (which come from the Apple store and are free). This would resolve our issues.