This week, an increasing number of Nintendo account holders have been reporting suspicious activity on their accounts, sometimes including unauthorised logins and payments used to buy digital goods on Nintendo’s digital stores. In response, Nintendo advised players to set up 2-Step Verification to add another layer of security to their accounts, and have now issued an official statement.
Posted to Nintendo’s Japanese website, the statement confirms that around 160,000 Nintendo accounts which use a Nintendo Network ID to log in may have been affected by unauthorised logins. These hacking attempts have been taking place since around the beginning of April.
Nintendo says that it has now abolished the option to login using a Nintendo Network ID and will enforce password updates for any accounts which have either been directly affected, or use that login method. Anyone affected by these changes will be notified by email.
Nintendo warns that information such as a player’s nickname, date of birth, country / region, or email address may have been viewed by a third party if connected to a Nintendo Network ID. Players’ credit card information remains safe and secure.
We’ve shared this numerous times before, but we really do recommend that you set up 2-Step Verification on your account to be as safe as possible, following Nintendo’s own advice. Here’s how to do just that:
How To Set Up 2-Step Verification On My Nintendo Switch Account
- Go to the Nintendo Account website and sign in to your Nintendo Account.
- Select Sign-in and security settings, then scroll down to 2-Step Verification and click Edit.
- Click 2-Step Verification settings.
- Click Send email to have a verification code sent to the email address on file.
- If the email address is incorrect, click the Email address menu setting under User Info to change it.
- Enter the verification code from the email, then Submit.
- Install the Google Authenticator app on your smart device.
- This is a free app, available through Google Play (Android) and the App Store (iOS).
- Use the smart device app to scan the QR code displayed on your Nintendo Account screen.
- A 6-digit verification code will appear on your smart device. Enter the verification code into the field under step 3 on the Nintendo Account screen, then Submit.
- A list of backup codes will appear. Click Copy to copy all the codes, then paste them somewhere safe.
- A backup code will be required to log in if you don’t have access to the Google Authenticator app. MAKE SURE TO KEEP THESE SOMEWHERE SAFE.
- You can use these (one time each) if you do not have access to the Google Authenticator app.
- Click I have saved the backup codes, then OK.
- Once set, you can return to the 2-step verification settings section to review the backup codes and remove the 2-step restriction.