[call for action] IB is forcing 2FA

That would be a problem for me as I have multiple family accounts.

 

What if I break my phone ?
I can’t log into the desktop anymore ?

 

I have a similar setup: start my automated trading system on Sunday evening and log on to Gateway with a challenge-response system *). Then I let it run for the entire week until the next Saturday, when I switch it off. Gateway automatically restarts itself every day, at a time specified by me. I don't recall Gateway ever failing to do so.

*) The challenge-response system gives two random serial numbers on screen (1~224) and I have to provide the correct code for these, reading from a credit-card sized plastic card. No app on my phone, finger prints, or stuff like that.

 

Just restarting it on Mondays morning.
The rest of the week, I don't do anything special and it keeps running.

 

In 15 years, I don't recall having to reconnect mid-week, I mean with manual re-login.

 

You will have to call IB for them to provide you with alternative methods of authentification while you get a new phone or have your current one repaired.

 

I'll bet this becomes a FINRA requirement by 24 or 25.

 

Well, I have experienced several outage this year:
Gateway shuts off by itself
2 times lost of NBBO update while historical data is ok.
If no 2FA required, all problems like above can be solved by automated monitoring and restart. Even providing a variety of 2FA methods can be helpful, not just the mobile app.

 

This would be extremely annoying... except IB already made it impossible to use IBC to log in every day - instead like a lot of people I have to log in once a week. So given the current situation, having to use 2FA once a week to log in isn't really that burdnesome. And there are at least 2, maybe 3, ways you can do it: old fashioned plastic card, fancy gold card if you have it and the batteries are still going, and phone app.

Having to login once a week isn't really that burdensome. OK, it annoys me specifically because I often go on holiday for several weeks leaving my computer trading, and it isn't on the cloud so I can't remotely login, but I'm guessing I'm a corner case.

GAT

 

For this use-case am I using Teamviewer because it works on both Linux (Ubuntu) and iPad. I enable it on my Linux trading server at home before I leave and then do the weekend re-logon remotely from the iPad. There is one big caveat though: This does NOT work on Ubuntu 22.04! Make sure that your Linux box uses an older version of the Ubuntu OS.