What IsOTP SMS?

OTP SMS is one of the most popular mechanisms used by companies to make sure that an authorized person generated the login request.

Once users enter their username and password, they receive an OTP on their mobile phones. The message contains a code, usually four to six digits that's valid for one-time use—some are even time-based one-time passwords (TOTP) that expire within a minute. Users have to enter the code quickly to proceed with logging in. This way, an OTP message guarantees that the user logging in is authorized by the account holder.

Trending Use Cases OF OPT SMS

• Two-factor authentication for login authorization
• Phone number verification for new registrations
• Account recovery for password resets
• Payment confirmation for making purchases

Who Needs an OTP SMS Service?

With increasing cyber crimes and user data theft, companies are prioritizing substantial account security mechanisms to minimize these instances. Many corporations like Google and Facebook have installed two-step authentication to protect users against unauthorized logins. The OTP text message technology has significantly simplified this process.

Online identity theft is a massive problem that's only growing in its magnitude, especially with more people posting sensitive personal information on the web. Nearly 15 million US citizens are victims of cyber-attacks annually, resulting in a cumulative loss of almost $50 billion. Statistically speaking, this puts over 100 million people in the US at risk of losing their data.

Enabling the SMS OTP verification process offers additional protection to users from hackers when logging in to a website. Nowadays, this isn't just a wise decision—it's an essential step to take. If you're running a website that stores sensitive user information, OTP verification offers additional security to your account holders. Not only is this service affordable, but it also builds trust with your customers.

Examples of OTP

While online OTP verification is optional, many companies have chosen to set it as a default step during the login process. Most of the businesses who have decided to do this deal with sensitive operations like online payment portals operated by banks or other financial service providers. Even email service providers like Gmail as well as social media platforms like Facebook implement OTP services for an extra layer of security.

Let's elaborate on how world-class giants secure their users' data with SMS.

Gmail SMS OTP Verification

Google claims it's very easy to get your account password stolen, which is why they encourage Gmail users to add the two-step OTP verification on their email accounts to prevent unauthorized access. The OTP text service is both fast and free to use. As soon as users log in to their Gmail account from an unauthorized device, they receive an SMS with a code, which users need to enter in order to access their account.

Facebook OTP SMS Verification

While Facebook doesn't demand OTP verification, they still recommend using it for safety. Users can provide their registered mobile phone number to Facebook and enable two-step verification. This way, when they log in, the social media platform sends a six-digit OTP verification code for users to proceed with the login. If users don't receive the code, they can send an SMS to 32665 to get the code for free.

Amazon OTP Message

Amazon uses OTP text messages as part of its two-step verification process. Customers can choose to receive their password through a voice call or with an Amazon authenticator app. Since many customers use their personal devices to log in, Amazon allows the option to register devices so that two-step verification is not required every time a user logs in.

Some devices offered by Amazon also require OTP authentication even though they do not redirect to a page where you'll enter the passcode. In these cases, Amazon requires customers to log in on their device once and displays an error message saying that either the username and/or password is incorrect. Meanwhile, Amazon sends an OTP to the user’s mobile phone number. Then, customers must sign in again, using their Amazon username, password, and OTP code.

Netflix SMS Verification

Netflix OTP verifications are one the most important constituents in the streaming service's security system. Users receive OTP code regarding any security-related activity, whether it's changing a password, payment method, or having a new user register.

Netflix recently applied a new security approach to solving password-sharing among users. When users select their profile on a shared Netflix account, a pop-up appears asking to verify the account by confirming with a text or email. If the account holder chooses to verify later, the pop-up shows up later at a random time. However, this feature is still in its testing phase.

Dexatel as an OTP Service Provider

Dexatel is a trusted option for verifying users’ identities through OTP text message. Send a four-digit code to your customers with our service.

We offer you to test our Verify API free of charge to show the benefits of using the service. As part of the test, you can send up to 30 messages for free. Verification messages are priced flexibly, so you only pay for the message volume you use. You can even check whether or not your message is delivered.

Seamlessly integrate Verify API with your existing platform for an added layer of security.