We need your help now
Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
By continuing, you are indicating that you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
YOU CAN NEVER keep your accounts too safe. Accounts do get compromised, security breaches occur and most of the time, we rely on simple passwords.
Yet there is one useful way to improve your account security that you mightn’t be aware of. The only thing you need is your phone.
What is two-step verification?
Passwords on their own aren’t particularly secure. While you’re recommended to come up with as strong a password as possible,
Two-step verification (or two-step authentication depending on how you want to phrase it) adds an extra layer of security to your account, by making use of your phone on top of your existing email/username and password requirement.
Its main purpose is to prevent anyone from remotely accessing (or hacking) your account by making them require your phone as well, a difficult task considering that most hacks or security breaches happen remotely.
Great, but how does it work?
In this case, we will use Google as an example with all services supporting the feature follow the same basic template.
To start off, you will need to go into security, which you can find when you click on account under your profile, and you will see the option for two-step verification.
From there, it’s a matter of entering in your number, choosing whether to receive an SMS message or voice call with your code, and entering in the code you receive.
Once you’ve done that, you will be asked if this is your own personal computer – it’s strongly recommended you use your home computer instead of work – and then to officially confirm your decision.
And that’s it. You get a new code sent to you every time you require one to keep your accounts safe.
Who supports it?
Of the most popular services out there, Apple, Facebook, Dropbox, Google, Twitter, Evernote, PayPal, Steam, Microsoft, LinkedIn, Wordpress, Amazon, and Tumblr are just a few that offer two-step verification (Details on how to activate each one is included in each link).
This isn’t an extensive list by any means, but it shows that many of the services you already use it. They may offer different variations of the same thing, either by different names, different length codes or sometimes text, but ultimately, it’s something you should have activated.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
I first realised that I was going bald when it started taking longer and longer to wash my face…
Snap
That made me laugh out loud. Thank you. :-)
Some would willingly go bald to lose a wife…
Brilliant
A secret passed down from my father and his father to him, is to grow out the side of your hair, and simply swoop the hair across the bald scalp.
Nobody notices a thing and the ladies seem to go wild for it.
And then you end up in politics. Sorted!
I’m more worried about finding my wife going bald
I’ve been bald since my twenties, doesn’t bother me in the slightest, just takes me longer and longer to wash my face each day
“Sponsored by Regaine” – stopped reading.
Re-gain your confidence
My hair started leaving the building in my mid 20s. Initially it was dreadful. I was all about tactical hair manoeuvres. Eventually I decided to zero blade the lot. Best decision I made.
Good call man, that’s exactly what I’d do if I became follically challenged
see the ad where the guy drives a sports car into what looks like a hotel lobby, and he’s delighted with his wind-swept hair afterwards.. utter madness
I guess im one of the 62% who dont really give a toss.
Hair,hair! …. I mean here,here!
People fear uncertainty.
Men worry more about going bald because they fear it’s a real possibility they’ll end up having less sex.
Whereas finding a wife means less sex is pretty much guaranteed..
And yet I think bald men very sexy.
I read the article again. I don’t accept many of its findings … Such as, lack of confidence … Thats bulshit too. The most severe side effect that I’ve experienced is … You get cold very quickly when outside without a hat in winter, and severe sunburn if you go out without a hat in summer.
Those are the only side effects ive ever had
A life with out a Wife is like a Kitchen Without a Knife!
I am equally unworried about both but the tufts that are now starting to invade my nostrils and ear holes are a pain in the arse
And the hairs on your arse affecting your nose and ears? That’s mad :-D
# tears of laughter running down face in operating theatre
Im bald down below to get a wife
Silly poll that doesn’t have an option saying “do something about it…” dont know, shave it off and leave it alone are not options I would take.
You go bald because you have too much Dihydrotestosterone… this affects the hair follicles on the top of your head but not the follicles on the back and sides. There is a drug called finasteride that when taken daily lowers the amount of Dihydrotestosterone the body produces slowing down and stopping hair loss. Then just get a hair transplant for the thinning parts of your head. Check out dhi in Blackrock…
@Martin,
I also heard Finasteride can lower your sex drive and give you a limp d!ck so there’s the trade off.
Viagra for that :-D
Viagra causes hair loss.
It’s a vicious circle!
Martin I know a guy that got a hair transplant years ago.now he’s gone bald everywhere else but the top of his head where he got the transplant.what would you do then
Either do nothing shave it off or don’t know… did he stop taking his medication…
Brilliant :) smartass
Old person sad bald or
Young person cool bald?
Middle aged, worried bald?
Some guys wear it so well that it seems like they were born to be bald. Like that presenter on TG4. Wouldn’t look as good if he had hair.
I started losing mine in my early 20′s and it was a genuinely traumatic experience. I went from looking 20 to 35 in 12 months, I got the constant piss pulled out of me and I couldn’t get within 5 feet of a girl my age in a nightclub without being looked at like an old creep. It killed my confidence and had a huge effect on my life.
Strange that we have to grin and bear it when we get ripped to pieces for something that we can’t control, yet taking the piss out of a girl for gaining weight because she eats too much chocolate and is too lazy to go to the gym is socially unacceptable…..
Why go bald? Why go bald? Why go bald? In neon
Across from the george lads :-D
Its of cultural signifficance.
You really need a reality check if you’re worried about going bald. Get a life, there are people starving in this world
But are they bald?
Starvin Marvin is!
Breaking bad
My uncles (on my mothers side) all have hair like sideshow bob so phew.
I’m not bald, my hair on the sides just grows 10 times faster than the top
That’s mad!! My husband had a full head of hair when we met but he’s been pulling it out ever since. Can’t think why!!!!!!!
Martin, is there a way to put hair on my chest? I’m 32 and I haven’t got a single hair on my chest and I’ve moobs. :-)
I know how to get rid of my moobs – exercise n loose weight.
Bald men are sexy anyway!!!!
Why bother to do a survey if your response is “I don’t know”?
Bald since my 20s but shaved it before that anyway. Never bothered my confidence. Nice to see regaine taking such a vested interest in a survey like this though.
Shave it off… The friar tuck look is not a good one
Leave it as it is, cant wait till i get to sport a ‘bobby charlton’
Bald since my 20s but shaved it before that anyway. Never bothered my confidence. Nice to see regaine taking such a vested interest in a survey like this though. Detect the sarcasm…
The advice I heard over the years to keep your hair relatively strong and to ward off baldness is to wash hair in warm water, not hot water and not to use shampoo at all. However conditioner is ok to use apparently.
And then rub ice cream on your micky…
pmsl
Get a wig.problem solved
Some men are ok with it some are not! As a young guy who knows these are your only options that work. 1) Minoxdil – always buy online years supply is €50 2) nirozal shampoo – during clinical trials they found the side effects causes hair loss to slow down. It can be bought anywhere for dandruff
3) propecia – a tablet that blocks the hormone responsible for hairloss. Most effective but kills the sex drive.
4) hair transplant – take the hair from the back and put it up on top but very expensive. 5) and finally live with it. If you don’t care and you can pull off the Jason statham look then go for it. Don’t buy anything for hairloss in shops as its all online for 10% the price
What do you prefer Amy full head of hair or shaved ?
I don’t mind really… It’s whatever the guy prefers himself!
Been shaving my head since I was about 18. Started thinning up top when I was 30.
I’m more worried about finding a partner then going bald
Thailand for you my friend.
Use precise geolocation data. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Store and/or access information on a device. Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development.
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work.
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then these services may not function properly.
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not be able to monitor our performance.
Cookies, device or similar online identifiers (e.g. login-based identifiers, randomly assigned identifiers, network based identifiers) together with other information (e.g. browser type and information, language, screen size, supported technologies etc.) can be stored or read on your device to recognise it each time it connects to an app or to a website, for one or several of the purposes presented here.
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times an ad is presented to you).
Information about your activity on this service (such as forms you submit, content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (for example, information from your previous activity on this service and other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (that might include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present advertising that appears more relevant based on your possible interests by this and other entities.
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on your advertising profiles, which can reflect your activity on this service or other websites or apps (like the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects.
Information about your activity on this service (for instance, forms you submit, non-advertising content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (such as your previous activity on this service or other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (which might for example include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present content that appears more relevant based on your possible interests, such as by adapting the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find content that matches your interests.
Content presented to you on this service can be based on your content personalisation profiles, which can reflect your activity on this or other services (for instance, the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects. This can for example be used to adapt the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find (non-advertising) content that matches your interests.
Information regarding which advertising is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine how well an advert has worked for you or other users and whether the goals of the advertising were reached. For instance, whether you saw an ad, whether you clicked on it, whether it led you to buy a product or visit a website, etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of advertising campaigns.
Information regarding which content is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine whether the (non-advertising) content e.g. reached its intended audience and matched your interests. For instance, whether you read an article, watch a video, listen to a podcast or look at a product description, how long you spent on this service and the web pages you visit etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of (non-advertising) content that is shown to you.
Reports can be generated based on the combination of data sets (like user profiles, statistics, market research, analytics data) regarding your interactions and those of other users with advertising or (non-advertising) content to identify common characteristics (for instance, to determine which target audiences are more receptive to an ad campaign or to certain contents).
Information about your activity on this service, such as your interaction with ads or content, can be very helpful to improve products and services and to build new products and services based on user interactions, the type of audience, etc. This specific purpose does not include the development or improvement of user profiles and identifiers.
Content presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type, or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times a video or an article is presented to you).
With your acceptance, your precise location (within a radius of less than 500 metres) may be used in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
With your acceptance, certain characteristics specific to your device might be requested and used to distinguish it from other devices (such as the installed fonts or plugins, the resolution of your screen) in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Your data can be used to monitor for and prevent unusual and possibly fraudulent activity (for example, regarding advertising, ad clicks by bots), and ensure systems and processes work properly and securely. It can also be used to correct any problems you, the publisher or the advertiser may encounter in the delivery of content and ads and in your interaction with them.
Certain information (like an IP address or device capabilities) is used to ensure the technical compatibility of the content or advertising, and to facilitate the transmission of the content or ad to your device.
Information about your activity on this service may be matched and combined with other information relating to you and originating from various sources (for instance your activity on a separate online service, your use of a loyalty card in-store, or your answers to a survey), in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
In support of the purposes explained in this notice, your device might be considered as likely linked to other devices that belong to you or your household (for instance because you are logged in to the same service on both your phone and your computer, or because you may use the same Internet connection on both devices).
Your device might be distinguished from other devices based on information it automatically sends when accessing the Internet (for instance, the IP address of your Internet connection or the type of browser you are using) in support of the purposes exposed in this notice.
The choices you make regarding the purposes and entities listed in this notice are saved and made available to those entities in the form of digital signals (such as a string of characters). This is necessary in order to enable both this service and those entities to respect such choices.
have your say