Benefits and Drawbacks of Adding SMS Authentication to Shopify | Recommended SMS Authentication Apps

"RuffRuff 予約販売" helps reduce the lost sales opportunities that occur during stockouts, before a new product launches, or while waiting for restocks.
You can set up pre-orders on your own Shopify store with remarkable ease, registering an unlimited number of pre-order products and accepting an unlimited number of pre-orders. It can also restrict customers from ordering pre-order and regular products together, and send back-in-stock notifications when the restock date is undecided.
It also offers many unique features not found in other pre-order apps, such as a "deferred payment" feature that lets you collect payment before the product ships.

To enhance the safety and reliability of online stores, SMS authentication has become an essential security measure. This article explains in detail the importance, benefits, drawbacks, and implementation methods of SMS authentication for Shopify stores. In this rapidly changing digital environment, we introduce the latest authentication methods for protecting customers' personal information and preventing unauthorized access.

What Is SMS Authentication?

SMS authentication is a security method in which users verify their identity using the short message service (SMS) sent to their mobile phone. This authentication method is widely adopted by many online services and applications, and is especially often used as part of two-factor authentication (2FA).

Basic Flow of SMS Authentication

1. Enter your mobile phone number during registration or login: The user registers their mobile phone number with the service.
2. Sending the verification code: When the user logs in or performs an important action, the service sends an SMS containing a temporary verification code to the registered mobile phone number.
3. Entering the verification code: The user reads the verification code from the received SMS and enters it in the designated field on the website or application.
4. Approving or denying access: If the entered code is correct, the user's access is approved. If the verification code is incorrect or has expired, access is denied.

Benefits of SMS Authentication

Easy to Implement and Operate

SMS authentication can be started without any special equipment or advanced technology. Since most people already own a mobile phone, there is no need to purchase anything new. It can also be easily implemented by using a Shopify app.

Easy for Many People to Use

Today, since most people own a smartphone, SMS authentication is a highly accessible authentication method. It is also already used by many apps and services, so customers can start using it on a new service without any resistance.

Enhanced Security

Using SMS authentication increases account security. Since people normally carry their mobile phone with them, it is difficult for others to easily gain access to it. In addition, because the verification code is sent directly to the phone number, there is less risk of it leaking to a third party the way a password might.

Prevents Registration of Fraudulent Accounts

With SMS authentication, only one account can be registered per phone number. This helps prevent the creation of fake accounts. It makes it much easier to prevent fraudulent use compared to registering with only an ID and password.

Helps Prevent Reselling (Scalping)

SMS authentication is effective as a countermeasure against reselling. In lottery sales, by setting it up so that only users who have completed SMS authentication (identity verification) can enter, you can prevent a single user from entering multiple times. Since it is less common for a single user to have multiple phone numbers compared to email addresses, SMS authentication can be said to be more effective than email authentication.

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Drawbacks of SMS Authentication

SMS May Not Arrive Depending on Reception Settings

For example, if a smartphone is set to block messages from certain numbers, the important verification code may not arrive. This could prevent the user from being able to use the service. However, most people do not have such settings enabled, so there is no need to worry too much.

SMS May Not Be Receivable Depending on the Budget SIM Plan

Some budget SIM plans are data-only and do not come with a phone number. If a user is on this type of plan, they cannot receive SMS. However, many budget SIM providers also offer plans that can receive SMS, so it is not the case that no one on a budget SIM can receive it.

Users Cannot Log In If They Lose Their Device or Change Their Phone Number

If a user loses their smartphone or changes their phone number, they will no longer be able to receive the verification code. As a result, they may be unable to log in to the service. In this case, the authentication settings need to be updated with the new device or new phone number.

Incurs Costs

When using SMS authentication, there is usually a cost involved in sending the messages.

Shopify Apps for Implementing SMS Authentication

miniOrange OTP Login/Register

miniOrange OTP Login/Register is a Shopify app that makes it easy to implement OTP (One-Time Password) authentication and 2FA (two-factor authentication). In addition to SMS authentication, it supports various authentication methods including email authentication and WhatsApp authentication. You can send up to 10 SMS messages for free, so give it a try.

miniOrange OTP Login/Register Pricing Plans

* OTP authentication (One-Time Password authentication) is an authentication method that uses a password valid only once. This password is automatically changed at regular intervals, or newly generated each time a specific action (such as a login attempt) is performed. OTP is often used as part of multi-factor authentication (MFA) to strengthen security.

* 2FA (two-factor authentication) is an authentication method that uses two different authentication factors to strengthen security. This makes it possible to more effectively prevent unauthorized access to accounts than using a password alone.

Simply OTP Login

Simply OTP Login is a Shopify app that makes it easy to implement OTP (One-Time Password) authentication. Like miniOrange OTP Login/Register, it supports not only SMS authentication but also email authentication and WhatsApp authentication.

Simply OTP Login Pricing Plans

Extendons OTP Login with Phone

Extendons OTP Login with Phone is a Shopify app that makes it easy to implement OTP (One-Time Password) authentication. It allows you to switch from traditional email-and-password login authentication to phone-number-based login authentication. The price varies depending on the Shopify plan you are subscribed to, and merchants on the Basic plan can use the app at a relatively low cost.

Extendons OTP Login with Phone Pricing Plans

In Conclusion

This article explained in detail how to implement SMS authentication using Shopify apps. SMS authentication is an effective means of strengthening security and plays an important role in protecting user accounts from unauthorized access. In particular, by using apps such as miniOrange OTP Login/Register, Simply OTP Login, and Extendons OTP Login with Phone, you can easily strengthen the authentication process for your Shopify store.

Finally, the blog article below introduces a variety of recommended apps by category, including not only SMS authentication apps but also apps for "customer acquisition," "sales growth," and "blog article enhancement." Please use it as a reference.

Recommended Shopify Apps: A Complete Guide from Sales Growth and Efficiency to Free Apps!
A thorough guide to recommended apps for streamlining your Shopify store operations! We introduce carefully selected apps by purpose, including customer acquisition, CVR improvement, workload reduction, SEO measures, and newsletter creation. Packed with useful information for everyone from beginners to advanced users! Rather than ranking by popularity, these are Shopify apps we can genuinely recommend after actually using them ourselves — from free apps to the highest-quality, Shopify-certified apps!