Best practices for switching phone numbers with 2FA?

Question

I&rsquo;ve moved and am hoping to switch to a local number (thanks to the prevalence of spam calls from other jurisdictions, people don&rsquo;t answer real calls from a non-local number!). I&rsquo;ve got 2FA set up with a variety of websites that I never thought twice about and sometimes only use sporadically. I don&rsquo;t have any real record of what services are connected with my number.Anyone whose been through this, do you have any tips for how to manage this efficiently so that I don&rsquo;t suddenly lose access to critical services because of a phone number change?

LinuxBender · Accepted Answer

Do you still have both numbers? If so, add the 2nd number to your profile with each company and then have them send a confirmation code. Some companies will send a code to the old number for you to verify your new number. Select the new number as your new primary number and make sure SMS is enabled for that line before you get rid of the old number.
If you do not have both numbers then you may have to open a support case and may have to send in copies of your state ID and other documents. For brick-and-mortar businesses, just walk in and have an employee help you. This is important with banks as sometimes your number may be in sub-systems that the user portal does not update.
Enable call forwarding on the old line to your new number so that if they call to verify you, you get the voice call. That won't help with SMS text messages however may be useful if they call to verify your number change. For most U.S. providers this is 72 1 10 digit number* but I would still look that up. *73 to cancel unconditional call forwarding in most providers in the US at least.

bombcar · Answer

Can you get the new number on something like an MVNO or even a second line for a month or two with a second phone?