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Comment by slg | Hacker News Reader

The headline is a little misleading. The "limits" aren't with 2FA. The problem is there are holes in Apple's feature set where 2FA isn't enabled. This is an Apple problem and not necessarily a 2FA problem. As others have said, there are ways around this lost device problem like the one time use codes that Google and other companies provide.

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My main hole with 2FA and Apple is that I don't receive messages on my devices – with the new system. There's still SMS / texting as an alternative but it gets annoying and is less secure too.

Can also be lost.

I am losing things constantly (laptops, phones, documents — damn you, ADD), and I wouldn't want to be locked out from my digital life just because I lost another piece of paper or device.

In compensation, my symbolic memory is excellent — never had a problem with memorizing long passwords.

Then you should be able to memorize one of your backup codes, and you'll be fine..

I don't know if Apple does this, but Google's 2FA (and others) gives you static (printable - or memorizable!) backup codes in case you lose your device.

Yes, Apple gives you static backup codes

Ok, might be a solution then.

A bag of codes hidden in the pantry can't easily get lost

I lived in 6 different countries and changed 60 rented apartments (not to mention countless hotels).

Challenge accepted.

You live exactly in one country at a time. You live in one rented apartment at a time. You have one home country. And I am going to assume you also have at least one person you can trust such as your mother / father. If I were you, I would keep that backup code with your mother. I am not Clinton so I don't expect anyone break into my house, search for some code written on a piece of paper, and then try to use that code against me.

The point is, yes, YMMV, but there is plenty of solutions. The problem with MFA is that every MFA account comes with a static backup code. You ended up reopening the problem asymmetric key / public-key infrastructure was supposed to fix.

And you're an outlier. Congratulations. I bet you also buy a new phone every twelve minutes and a new laptop every hour, switch banks twice daily and get a new set of DNA and fingerprints every week.

And it's not going to be worth the time or trouble to try to design a system that accommodates you, unless you're also a multi-billionaire. Any user-facing system will fall down when faced with certain extreme outliers who violate its basic assumptions; so long as the system works well enough, for enough people, that's not a bug.

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