Premium Google One subscribers can get a free Titan 2FA key

For a limited time, the benefits of paying for a large Google One warehouse subscription include a hardware-enhanced security key

From time to time, Google One subscribers provide perks to cough up the extra dough up for paid storage. If you are in the US and have one of the “premium” branded 2TB + plans, you may be eligible to claim a free two-factor Titan Security key, even if the “standard” 200 GB subscribers are unlucky.

You should see the option listed among your other account benefits if you are eligible for the promotion, which allows you to claim one of the two currently sold versions of the Titan Security Key (each of which is just a converted Feitan model) . You can choose either the USB-A and NFC version (a value of $ 30) or the USB Type-C / NFC version (a value of $ 35). The old battery-powered Bluetooth-based security key has been discontinued.

Google had a similar offer for Advanced Protection users back in 2019, allowing customers to send a friend a free set of two 2FA keys and, if the recipient enabled Advanced Protection on their own account, earn themselves a free Nest Mini .

The campaign can give you one of the keys above.

This offer is simple to claim: It should appear as a “selected benefit” on the Home tab of the Google One app, on the Benefits tab, or you should see it listed in the benefits section of the Google One website. Either way, it’s a single click or click away to claim it in the Google Store, with a discount code covering the full price of the 2FA key and slower shipping.

The offer appears to expire on November 1, according to the current terms that appear when you check out, although Google warns that there is a “limited number available on a first-come, first-served basis.” The deal appears to be US only and requires you to actively have one of the “premium” 2TB + Google One plans.

Two-factor authentication is one of the best ways to increase the security of your online accounts, by providing a “what you have” along with a “what you know” when you verify your identity, which better ensures that you are the one you claim to be. You can not log in without the hardware key.

Some of us simply rely on phone number-based two-factor authentication (you know the 5-6 digit numbers you get sent via SMS to log in), but with how vulnerable carriers are from socially developed attacks, it’s an uncertain system. Hardware-based two-factor authentication with a hardware security key like this is the best way to protect your most important accounts. And if you do not already have a 2FA hardware security key like this, I strongly encourage you to take advantage of the offer if it is available to you. Technically Google’s hardware security keys are vulnerable to an intricate cloning attack, but it’s very, very difficult to fix, and it’s unlikely to be a problem.

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