State of U2F in December 2020
NOTE: This is an updated version of my original article: “State of U2F in May 2019” (18 months ago)
I am attempting to register physical USB keys with various online accounts in an attempt to improve my online security.
I purchased multiple YubiKey keys (YubiKey 5C and YubiKey 5C Nano) with the intent to register at least two keys with each of my supported online accounts so that I have a backup in case my primary key is lost or stolen. I have access to additional YubiKey keys for testing, so I will attempt to register at least 3 keys with each service.
Before you begin, consider using YubiKey manager to disable all interfaces except “FIDO U2F” and “FIDO2” on each key. I manually labeled each of my keys as “U2F NNNN”, though it is unclear which sites are using older FIDO1 (FIDO U2F) and which sites are using newer FIDO2. The “OTP” interface is similar to Google Authenticator [1] and could leak your identity [2]. Disabling OTP will prevent YubiKey from typing a string every time you tap the YubiKey button. Only enable the interfaces you intend to use.
Here is a summary of my experience with each online provider. Each browser test was performed on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) on Apple Silicon M1 with latest version of Brave (1.2.40 88.0.4315.5), Firefox (84.0), and Safari (14.0.2) 64-bit browsers. I am able to register keys to my accounts and authenticate to my accounts using Brave, Firefox, and Safari. All 3 browsers appear to have built-in support for “WebAuthn” and/or “U2F”.
Google (Apps, Cloud)
Key Limit: Multiple (6+) — Successfully registered 6 different U2F keys
Supported Browsers:
• Brave (1.2.40 88.0.4315.5) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Intel/Rosetta 2
• Firefox (84.0) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Universal App
• Safari (14.0.2) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Universal App
GitHub
Key Limit: Multiple (6+) — Successfully registered 6 different U2F keys
Supported Browsers:
• Brave (1.2.40 88.0.4315.5) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Intel/Rosetta 2
• Firefox (84.0) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Universal App
• Safari (14.0.2) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Universal App
Key Limit: Multiple (6+) — Successfully registered 6 different U2F keys
Supported Browsers:
• Brave (1.2.40 88.0.4315.5) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Intel/Rosetta 2
• Firefox (84.0) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Universal App
Unsupported Browser:
• Safari (14.0.2) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Universal App (fallback to OTP authenticator code)
WordPress (via Plugin)
Key Limit: Multiple (6+) — Successfully registered 6 different U2F keys
Supported Browsers:
• Brave (1.2.40 88.0.4315.5) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Intel/Rosetta 2
• Firefox (84.0) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Universal App
• Safari (14.0.2) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Universal App
NameCheap
Key Limit: Multiple (6+) — Successfully registered 6 different U2F keys
Supported Browsers:
• Brave (1.2.40 88.0.4315.5) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Intel/Rosetta 2
• Firefox (84.0) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Universal App
• Safari (14.0.2) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Universal App
Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Key Limit: ONE (1) — Simple On/Off toggle for 2FA. Must choose either OTP or U2F. Cannot enable both simultaneously. Unable to Register Multiple U2F Keys [3]
Supported Browsers:
• Brave (1.2.40 88.0.4315.5) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Intel/Rosetta 2
• Firefox (84.0) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Universal App
Unsupported Browsers:
• Safari (14.0.2) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Universal App
Key Limit: ONE (1) — Simple On/Off toggle for U2F. Unable to Register Multiple U2F Keys. Can enable OTP and U2F simultaneously.
Supported Browsers:
• Brave (1.2.40 88.0.4315.5) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Intel/Rosetta 2
• Firefox (84.0) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Universal App
• Safari (14.0.2) on macOS 11.1 (Big Sur) – M1 Universal App
No Support for U2F or FIDO2
• LinkedIn – The only supported verification methods are SMS and OTP (Authenticator App) as of 12/2020
• MailChimp – The only supported verification methods are SMS and OTP (Authenticator App) as of 12/2020
• Slack – The only supported verification methods are SMS and OTP (Authenticator App) as of 12/2020. More Info
References
[1] Medium: The Unofficial FIDO U2F FAQ
[2] Hacker Noon: Avoid Leaking Your Identity with YubiKey
[3] AWS: Use YubiKey security key to sign into AWS Management Console with YubiKey for multi-factor authentication (comments confirm only one U2F device is supported per login)