We are often asked how secure Xero is, and we always assure users that security is fundamental to everything Xero does.
- Data is backed up constantly throughout the day
- Data is stored in multiple secure locations.
- Data is encrypted using industry standard data-encryption
- Multiple layers of firewalls are in place
- Security audits are regularly performed
Here is Xero’s page on Security for more info.
And a quick Xero video (1 minute) on security and phishing scams.
But there’s more that you can do. Have you enabled 2 factor-authentication?
This is really easy to set up, and ensures that no-one can access your data with just your login and password.
Once set up, every time you login with your username and password, you will also need an additional code generated from an app on your phone.
This is linked only with your own Xero login, and only your app, so no-one else can generate the code for your login, even if they also have downloaded the code authenticator app.
To set 2-factor authentication up on Xero:
1. Login to Xero and click on your name at the top right of the screen
2. Then click Account Settings:
3. This will take you to your Account Settings screen, where you will see Two-step authentication. Mine is already enabled, so I can’t show you the next steps, but follow the instructions here to Enable two-step authentication.
4. This will require you to download an authenticator app onto your phone -we use Google Authenticator, which you can download from iTunes or the PlayStore.
5. Pair the authenticator app by following the onscreen instructions and either scanning a barcode from your computer screen, or entering a key from the Xero two-step authenticator instructions.
6. Once paired with your phone the authenticator app will generate a unique authentication code every 30 seconds.
*We also use this for our G Suite accounts – same set up but it generates a different code for your G-Suite login..
Thank you for reading. Have a read of ‘Why we want you to use Xero‘ and get in touch if we can help you with getting set up on Xero.
Sharon
sharon@kinderaccountants.co.uk
@KinderAccountants
