Twitter is providing its users on iPhone and Android with new ways to manage their accounts from their smartphones.
Tuesday, the information network updated its applications with mobile enhancements to log-in verification, the two-factor authentication system that members can turn on to add a extra layer of security to their accounts.
Now users on iPhone and Android can use the Twitter app to set up log-in verification and approve requests. Instead of a text message with a six-digit code, as was previously the process, members receive a push notification from Twitter on their configured iPhone or Android device directing them to approve or deny the log-in request. Each log-in request includes details on the browser type and location behind the log-in attempt, so application users can keep an eye on suspicious behavior. When members turn on the feature, available in the security section of the app, they'll also receive a backup code to save and use to log in to Twitter when they don't have access to their smartphone.
The new process requires people to have their Android or iPhone device on them at all times to approve Twitter log-ins, which is a twist from the SMS-based system that Twitter first introduced in May after a string of headline-grabbing hacking incidents. The reworked system also extends log-in verification to more international users, as it doesn't require carrier support, and works for people with multiple Twitter accounts.
Twitter's application for iPhone and Android was also updated Tuesday with some of the search improvements the information network released for its Web version last week. Mobile-app search now includes photo galleries for better browsing, along with something Twitter calls "social context," or a way to see your follow relationship with the accounts that surface in results. Power users on iOS will also appreciate that Twitter has finally added the option to manage lists from inside the application.
Source: www.news.cnet.com
