Authenticator app

An authenticator app is a phone or computer app that generates short login codes for multi-factor authentication. Examples include Google Authenticator, Microsoft Authenticator and the authenticators built into many password managers. Usually the code is 6 digits and changes every 30 seconds. Because the code is created on your device rather than sent by text, it cannot be stolen through a SIM swap, making it stronger than SMS. Some services instead send a push prompt to the app; the safer kind uses number matching, where you type a number shown on the login screen. App codes can still be phished on a fake page, so passkeys are stronger still.