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How to secure your YouTube account

Written By Jewel Sta Ana
Published • November 5th, 2020
FeatureSoftware
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Whether you’re a private citizen or a content creator, securing a YouTube account should always be a priority. In this way, account users prevent their YouTube accounts from being hacked, hijacked, or compromised. Apart from the risk of losing subscribers, a YouTube account that has been hacked might wipe out your uploaded content and may access other user’s sensitive information. To avoid this, we’re giving you ways to make your YouTube account safe and secure.

Author’s note: The following steps may be done across web browsers, desktops, and mobile devices.

According to YouTube, there are four major ways of making an account secured: turning on 2-step verification, setting channel-level permissions, creating strong passwords, and be aware of potential scams.

Table of Contents

2-step verification

The two-step verification adds another layer of security for your account if you lost or have someone stolen your password. This also prevents hackers from getting information even if they already gained your log-in credentials. There are two ways of setting up 2-step verification. They may either enroll their account to Google’s security key or use their iOS or Android device’s built-in security key.

Go to this link and select ‘2-step verification’.
Click ‘Get Started’ to open the verification dialog box.
Log in to your email and password.
Set up a device to receive a security notification. You may select your phone as long as it is signed into your Google account.
Click ‘Try it Now’ to send a secure notification on your chosen device.
Tap ‘Yes’ to the connected device to set up a back-up text or call option.
After turning on the back-up option, users may now turn on the 2-step verification.

Once you already activated the 2-step verification, you may add more ways for identity verification. This includes setting up phone prompts, storing backup codes, using Google authenticator,

How to setup phone prompts, backup codes, and security key on iOS and Android devices:

On your device, go to your Google Account.
At the top, in the navigation panel, tap ‘Security.’
Under ‘Signing in to Google’, tap ‘2-Step Verification’.
Need to sign in.
In the ‘Add more second steps to verify it’s you’ section, select either the following: ‘Text message or voice call’ and ‘Security key.’ You may found the ‘Google Prompt’ under the ‘Security Key.’
Tap ‘Continue’.

Channel-level permissions

On the other hand, channel permissions allow other people to access channel data, tools, and features in a YouTube Studio with four different types of access. The feature basically limits the access of other people assigned with the four major roles on a YouTube channel. These include Manager for adding or removing others and edit channel details, Editor for uploading, editing, and deleting draft and published videos; Editor (limited) for functioning as an editor without seeing revenue information, Viewer for viewing all channel details, and Viewer (limited) for viewing all channel details except revenue information. The feature is available to both brand and non-brand account.

To add assign channel-level permissions:

Go to YouTube Studio.
On the left-hand side, click ‘Settings.’
Choose and click ‘Permissions.’
Choose ‘Invite’ and enter the email address of the person you’d like to invite.
Click ‘Access’ and select the role you’d like to assign to this person.
Click ‘Save.’

To remove or change access:

Go to YouTube Studio.
On the left-hand side, click ‘Settings.’
Choose and click ‘Permissions.’
Go to the person you’d like to remove and click the drop-down menu.
Select a new role or click ‘Remove access.’

Note: Some parts of Studio are not yet supported by Channel Permissions. Invited users will not access features that aren’t yet built into Studio like info cards and end screens, Live Control Room, YouTube website, and any of the YouTube apps (including Studio Mobile).

Creating strong passwords

To prevent hackers from guessing your log-in information, YouTube highly suggests creating strong passwords. A strong password should be 8-characters long or more, comprising of any combination of uppercase or lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. Avoid using personal information and common words or patterns, and using the same YouTube account password on other sites to keep your account safe. It’s also important not to share your passwords with anyone.

Users may also utilize the Password Alert feature exclusively for Chrome. This sends automatic alerts when your Google password is used to sign in to non-Google sites.

How to use Password Alert for Chrome

In Google Chrome, sign in to your Google Account.
Go to the Chrome store and download Password Alert.
Follow the onscreen instructions.
Sign in to your Google Account again to get started.

Be aware of potential scams

Apart from updating YouTube and checking the Security Checkup page from time to time, users should also be aware of online scams that crooks and hackers usually use to prey on victims. Users and content creators should be aware that official YouTube emails only come from @youtube.com and @google.com email addresses. Those who will get emails from suspicious sources should not open attachments, reply, or click on links.

And that sums up the basics of securing a YouTube account. Stay vigilant on what you share online and do these steps often to ensure your data privacy. Have you experienced getting your YouTube account deleted or hacked? How did you retrieve it? Let us know in the comments below!