How secure is your Subscriber List? Can hackers crack your single-step password Login and steal your precious Subscribers?  Maybe you think that doesn’t happen, so there is no need to worry?  Sadly, you would be wrong. Unfortunately, that is exactly what happened to me.  I don’t know how they got in to steal my New Subscribers, but they did, and I had to immediately shut down all access to my Subscriber List to block the spam-bot, hacker, or whoever else it was.

Update April 2015: Mailchimp is about phase out the anti-hacking double authenticator app AlterEgo and use the free Google Authenticator app instead. See MailChimp Support’s article: How to integrate Google Authenticator with your Mailchimp email list account.

If you have a paid Mailchimp auto-responder account, MailChimp will still give you the 10% discount which rewards you for using a double authenticator system. If hackers and phishers can’t get in, they cannot steal anything. You need it! Believe me! All the info below about the advantages of AlterEgo also applies to Google Authenticator…

AlterEgo will block hackers, phishing attacks, spambots, scammers and any other low life you can imagine.  In fact AlterEgo blocks access to your Subscriber Lists from anyone, other than you.

How Does Double Login Work To Protect Your MailChimp Account Access?

A double login security app is hacker-proof because the app sends you a personal login access code to your own personal mobile device that only you can see i.e. it provides a double login system.  First, you log into MailChimp in the usual way, with your normal MailChimp username and password. Then, instead of getting access to your MailChimp Account straight away, you are presented with an additional AlterEgo Login/Google Autenticator step.  So in order to get past this extra login step, you have to enter a temporary, randomly generated number that AlterEgo/Google Authenticator sends out to your personal mobile device. Only that randomly generated, temporary personal number will unlock access to your MailChimp Account.

So no-one else knows.  No-one else sees. And therefore no-one other than you, can get into your account – ever!  Clever, eh? The security provided by AlterEgo is hacker-proof because no hacker has access to see your independent mobile device.  Of course there is also an option to authorize other people into your MailChimp account as well, as long as you have authorized their access before-hand.  Brilliant!

What To Do If You Don’t Have a Mobile Device Handy

If you don’t have a working mobile device to access the AltertEgo/Google Authenticator random generator app, do not worry. You can also access it all from your computer.  AlterEgo/Google Authenticator does not recommend using your computer to generate your random security number, because doing so makes your security slightly less secure than using your independent mobile device.  However, as long as you create an AlterEgo/Google Authenticator Account that has a different username and password to your MailChimp Account, you still have double the security barrier compared to the single step MailChimp login.

Always Use Different Usernames & Different Strong Passwords on All Important Accounts

Ahem… you don’t use ‘Admin’ and a pathetic password on any of your important accounts, DO YOU??  If you do, head on over to HERE and to HERE to see how easy it is to change WordPress usernames and passwords.  And HERE to find out how to come up with any number of super-strong un-hackable passwords that you can remember.

You may not think you need to do all this, but you would be wrong – when that hacker/spambot grub got into my MailChimp settings, it caused no-end of hassles.  I had to shut down access to my Subscriber List. I had to change all my blog-related usernames and Passwords everywhere. I had to start a new List for my new Subscribers, with new codes, and change my MailChimp API Security Key. What a pain!  Thank goodness that setting up AlterEgo/Google Authenticator is really easy and fast – no hassles – it works like a charm, every time. No worries, anymore.

How To Set Up AlterEgo On Your MailChimp Account

or Now:

How to Set up New Google Authenticator on your MailChimp Account

You might think that having to take an extra step every time you want to access your MailChimp will be complicated, tedious, and a step too far – I thought it would be too, but I was wrong. It’s really easy – and fast.  I reckon that a couple of extra clicks is a cheap price to pay for absolute and solid security for your precious list.

This is yet another reason to use MailChimp, which you can use free of charge using a Forever Free account until you get more than 2,000 on your List.  See HERE for details. If you have a paid Mailchimp Account, Mailchimp gives you a 10% discount when you add AlterEgo/Google Authenticator to your Mailchimp Account.

Update: see the new Google Authenticator integration instead

Read how Google Authenticator works, and follow the steps you go through to set it up.

The instructions are clear and easy – I did it OK, and I’m a complete bumble-brain when it comes to using apps on my phone. If I can do it, anyone can do it – sadly, I’m not joking.

Use a Completely Different Username and Password to your Mailchimp Login username and password.  This is important because even if your Mailchimp Login has been compromised by hackers or any spammers or phishing attacks, they will still have to crack your second AlterEgo login details as well, as long as they are both different.

All done! Easy as – and home in time for tea…tra la!