Two-factor authentication and account security

Your Balancely login reaches your TallyPrime books, so it is worth protecting. In Settings you can change your password, turn on two-factor authentication with an app on your phone, sign out devices you do not recognise, and read a log of sign-ins and important account changes, kept for a year.

Before you start

• All of this is under Settings, on the Security and Security log tabs. Everyone has these, whatever their role.

• For two-factor authentication you need an authenticator app on your phone, such as Google Authenticator or Microsoft Authenticator.

How to change your password

1. 1

   Open Settings and choose the Security tab.

2. 2

   In Change password, enter your Current password and a New password. Use at least 10 characters, including a letter and a number.

3. 3

   Choose Change password.

Every other device signed in to your login is signed out. The one you are using stays signed in. If you forgot your password, use the reset link on the sign-in page instead.

Turn on two-factor authentication

With two-factor authentication on, signing in needs your password and a 6-digit code from your phone. Someone who learns your password still cannot get in.

1. 1

   On the Security tab, find Two-factor authentication and choose Turn on.

2. 2

   Enter your Current password and choose Continue. If you use Google and have no password, this step is skipped, but you may be asked to sign in again first if your last sign-in was over 10 minutes ago.

3. 3

   Open your authenticator app, add an account, and scan the QR code. If you cannot scan, type the Setup key shown under it.

4. 4

   Enter the 6-digit code the app shows and choose Turn on two-factor authentication.

5. 5

   Save your 10 recovery codes with Copy or Download, then choose I have saved them.

Signing in with it on

After your password, or after Continue with Google, you see Enter your code. Type the code from your app and choose Verify. Without your phone, choose Use a recovery code and enter one of your saved codes.

New recovery codes

The card shows how many of your 10 codes are left, and warns you when 2 or fewer remain. Choose New recovery codes, enter the code from your app, and choose Make new codes. Your old codes stop working at once.

Turn it off

Choose Turn off, enter your Current password (if you sign in with Google and have no password, this is not asked) and a code from your app, or choose Use a recovery code instead. Then choose Turn off. Your password alone then protects your account.

If you lose your phone

1. 1

   On the sign-in page, enter your password (or choose Continue with Google), then choose Use a recovery code and enter one of your saved codes.

2. 2

   Go to Settings → Security and choose Turn off, using another recovery code.

3. 3

   Choose Turn on again and scan the new QR code with your new phone. You get a fresh set of recovery codes.

If your team requires two-factor sign-in, ask the account owner to switch off Require two-factor sign-in for a moment so you can move it to the new phone. Without your phone or a recovery code, the sign-in cannot be completed.

Signed-in devices and "Sign out everywhere"

Signed-in devices on the Security tab lists every browser signed in to your login, with its IP address and when it was last used. The one you are on is marked This device.

• Choose Sign out beside a device you do not recognise. It has to sign in again.

• Choose Sign out everywhere to sign out every browser, including this one. Your connections and automations keep running.

Balancely also tells you, in the app and by email, when your login is used from a browser and address it has not seen in the last 30 days. If it was not you, change your password and sign out everywhere.

Read the security log

The Security log tab lists sign-ins and important changes, newest first, with the Event, IP address and Date & time. Under each event you see what changed, who did it, and the device.

• Search with Search events. It matches IP addresses and most event names. To find two-factor events, pick them from the All events list instead.

• Pick one kind of event from the list that starts at All events.

• Choose the period: Today, Last 7 days, Last 30 days or All time. It opens on the last 30 days.

• Choose Download security log to save it as a CSV file, up to 5,000 rows.

Sign in with Google

Where it is offered, Continue with Google signs you in with your Google account. If you have two-factor authentication on, Balancely still asks for your code after Google. You can also set a password on the Security tab and use either way to sign in.

Require two-factor sign-in for your team

The account owner can turn on Require two-factor sign-in under Settings → Team. The owner must have it on for their own login first. Anyone without it is asked to set it up before they can open that account, and the Team table marks them Needs 2FA. They can still open their own account without it.

Common questions