I just signed up for WIX to set up a website for my new business and am anxious that someone else might break into the account and change things. What’s my best option for account security on WIX?
Congrats on your new business. You’re right to be cautious about online security, recognizing that if someone gains access to your new WIX account they could completely mess up your site, change your offer, or even add hateful comments. Far worse, though, is they could then change the account password and prevent you from getting back into the account and fixing things! Fortunately, WIX has some smart security options you can enable to maximize the security of your account.
The number one smart move in this regard, however, is to pick a good password and ensure it’s different from the password you use on other sites. The best strategy in this regard is to utilize a password management program, and I’m a long-time fan of 1Password if you want to research that as an option. Remember, your passwords should be at least 10 characters long, and include uppercase and lowercase letters, digits, and a punctuation mark or two. Ideally, skip dictionary words, so “Welcome2Wix!” really isn’t that great a choice, sorry to say. 😉
With that chosen, you’ll want to also enable Two-Step Authentication and then verify your email address to be able to recover access if you do get locked out. Before we start, you’ll want to download and install an authentication app on your mobile device. There are lots, but my favorites are Microsoft Authenticator, Google Authenticator, and Authy. Ready? Let’s look at what to do for maximum security!
ENABLE TWO-FACTOR AUTHENTICATION
Log in to your WIX account on your main computer and click on the tiny profile icon on the top right. A menu will appear:
From this list, you’ll want to choose “Account Settings“. Go to Account Security and you’ll see this checklist:
To enable 2-step verification – no big surprise! – click on “Enable” immediately below the section ingeniously labeled “2-step verification”…
You can just use text message-based 2-step verification, but I agree with WIX that the best approach is to use an authenticator app. Click on the “Enable” adjacent to the “RECOMMENDED” option.
Now WIX will show a QR code that you’ll need to scan with the Authentication app you’re going to use on your mobile device. It will look like this (minus the smiley face):
You’ll now need to grab your mobile phone and launch the Authentication app.
SWITCH TO YOUR PHONE
I am going to use Authy, so my iPhone screen looks like this:
You can see that it’s showing a PayPal security code but, of course, since it expires within 30 seconds, sharing it with you doesn’t compromise my account security at all. Gotta love authentication tech.
To proceed, tap on the “+ Add Account” button on the lower edge. In different Authentication apps, this will be in a different location, but it should be pretty darn easy to find since that’s the core functionality of the program.
“2FA” is an abbreviation for “2-factor authentication”, if you’re curious. Ready to go? Tap on “Scan QR Code” and point the camera at the computer screen. It usually scans and processes in a fraction of a second so the next thing you see is a prompt to name the new account:
I’ll just call it “WIX” for now. Easy enough. A tap on “Save” and I’m done. New 2FA added to Authy.
MEANWHILE, BACK ON THE COMPUTER SCREEN
Switching back to the computer, you can now tap on “Next ->” to proceed. It will prompt you for the current six-digit authentication code for WIX from your Authentication app:
If you just sit and watch the authenticator app, every 30 seconds it will dutifully change to another code. Enter it into the box on the WIX site to confirm you have it all set up properly, then click “Submit“.
Done!
ADD EMAIL FOR BACKUP
Actually, WIX prompts you to do one more thing for your account protection:
There’s no reason not to do this, so click on “Add Email Verification” and it will now show you on the Security section of your WIX account profile that you have the two key forms enabled:
Nicely done.
NEXT TIME YOU LOG IN
To practice how it works, log out of your WIX account, then log in again. This time, after you’ve entered your account and password, it will prompt you for that 6-digit code from the authenticator app:
All set up. Now you can be secure in knowing your account is going to be tough to hack. Now, how’s security for the rest of your computing setup and home network?
Pro Tip: I’ve been running and sporadically writing about my Plex server for quite a while. You can find the articles in my Computers & Internet Basics area if you’d like to read more while you’re visiting!