Over in your Google Two-Step settings, find the Mobile Application section, and click on iPhone. (There are also appsand thus linksfor Android and Blackberry phones.) Point your phone at the QR code that Google presents on screen, and the app will configure itself for your Google account. Now, when you need a verification code, launch the app, and it will present you with a new one to use.

Two-step authentication is annoying, a bit tedious to set up, and makes more work out of the seemingly simple act of logging in.

Of course, locking your doors or buckling your seatbelt takes a little extra energy, too. We make tradeoffs to ensure our safety, and digital safety is increasingly becoming just as important as physical security. If you rely on Googles services, two-step authentication is probably worth the hassle.