Users who are part of the Apple Developer program have started receiving emails that state they need to add 2-factor authentication to their accounts by February 27th, 2019. Otherwise, they will be locked out of their Developer accounts and be unable to access their Certificates, Identifiers, and Profiles.
The emails being sent have a subject line "Two-Factor Authentication Required Soon" and state that they are requiring two-factor authentication in order to provide an extra layer of protection for a developer's Apple ID and to make only they have access to their account.
Email sent to developers - click to enlargeThe full text of this email is below:
In an effort to keep your accounts more secure, two-factor authentication will be required to sign into your Apple Developer account and Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles starting February 27, 2019. This extra layer of security for your Apple ID helps ensure that you're the only person who can access your account. If you haven't already enabled two-factor authentication for your Apple ID, please learn more an update your security settings.
If you have any questions, contact us.
Best regards,
Apple Developer Relations
It turns out that the email is a bit confusing, as a developer
Christopher Pickslay contacted Apple Developer Relations and was told that only the Account Holder has to enable 2FA. Those who are in the admin role can still manage certificates and profiles without enabling this security feature.
Some developers have concerns with enabling 2-factor authentication, as according to the
Two-factor authentication for Apple ID support page, once enabled it can take up to two weeks to disable it again.
"If you already use two-factor authentication, you can no longer turn it off. Certain features in the latest versions of iOS and macOS require this extra level of security, which is designed to protect your information. If you recently updated your account, you can unenroll for two weeks. Just open your enrollment confirmation email and click the link to return to your previous security settings. Keep in mind, this makes your account less secure and means that you can't use features that require higher security."
Users have become so frustrated with Apple's 2FA policy, that one Apple owner has gone as far as to
sue Apple for forcing 2FA on his accounts.
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