AltCoinTrader 2FA: how to set up an authenticator app

AltCoinTrader is a South African cryptocurrency exchange where you trade crypto and withdraw rands (ZAR). Two-factor authentication (2FA) is optional, but verification level 3, which raises the withdrawal limit to R 1 000 000 per 24 hours, needs 2FA switched on for more than a month as well as verified FICA documents (AltCoinTrader).

The only 2FA method the help center describes is an authenticator app. It names Google Authenticator, but the codes are ordinary time-based ones (AltCoinTrader), so other apps work too. This guide uses Authenticator App - Novaz on iPhone. Any authenticator app works the same way.

How we checked this guide: the AltCoinTrader steps come from AltCoinTrader's own help center, linked below, which we read on October 24, 2026. The help center's web pages block automated access, so we read the same articles through its public article feed (the Zendesk help center API), with no sign-in. We haven't tested the steps on an AltCoinTrader account, so a label may differ slightly. The Novaz steps are checked against the app, version 1.0.5.

Turn on 2FA with an authenticator app

AltCoinTrader's setup article describes these steps (AltCoinTrader):

1. Sign in at www.altcointrader.co.za with your email address and password.
2. At the top right of the site, open the User Menu and choose Profile.
3. On the profile page, select Login & Security, then Enable 2FA.
4. AltCoinTrader shows a secret key. Write it down and store it somewhere safe before you go on.
5. In Novaz, tap +, then Scan QR code, and point the camera at the QR code. If the code is on the same iPhone, take a screenshot, tap +, then Choose a photo. See scanning a QR code on the same iPhone.
6. Type the six-digit code from Novaz in the verification code field and click Enable 2FA.
7. You should see Two-factor Authentication successfully updated.

You can also type the secret key instead of scanning: in Novaz, tap +, then Enter key manually, and paste the key as the Setup key. See What is a 2FA setup key?

One detail is unclear. AltCoinTrader's sign-in article talks about waiting for a 60-second timer in the app (AltCoinTrader), and no article states the code interval. Scan the QR code, because it carries the code settings, then tap the account in Novaz and check Interval under Details. A key typed by hand in Novaz always makes 30-second codes, so if the interval isn't 30 seconds, the saved key alone can't rebuild the account in Novaz later.

The secret key is your backup

The help center doesn't mention backup or recovery codes. What it does say, more than once, is to keep the secret key so you can restore 2FA on a new phone or after removing the app (AltCoinTrader). The same article also says the key can be used only once more after activation, without explaining what that means, so don't count on more than one restore.

Novaz keeps its keys on your iPhone unless you turn on iCloud backup or export a backup file, so without a Novaz backup the written key is your only way to rebuild the account. Treat it like a password: anyone who has it can make your codes.

When AltCoinTrader asks for a code

• Every sign-in. After your email address and password, a pop-up asks for the code. Type it and click Verify. AltCoinTrader suggests waiting for a fresh code before you copy it, which gives you the most time to enter it (AltCoinTrader).
• Withdrawals. For crypto and rand withdrawals, you enter your 2FA code, then click Request OTP and type the one-time PIN sent to your email. Without 2FA, AltCoinTrader sends an SMS code instead (AltCoinTrader, AltCoinTrader).

If AltCoinTrader rejects your code

AltCoinTrader's advice for iPhone is to check the clock: in Settings, find Date & Time, turn on Set Automatically, and make sure the time zone is right (AltCoinTrader). Novaz also warns you when the clock is 15 seconds or more off. Also check the Interval point above. More causes are in Authenticator code not working?

Changing phones

AltCoinTrader's way is to add the account to the new phone with your saved secret key (AltCoinTrader). In Novaz on the new iPhone, tap +, then Enter key manually. Keep the old phone until the new one has signed you in. If you have a Novaz iCloud backup or backup file, you can restore the account on the new iPhone instead, with its code settings intact. See How to transfer your authenticator app to a new iPhone.

If you lose your authenticator, or want 2FA off

If you saved the secret key, add it to a new app as above. Without it, the documented route is a 2FA removal request, which is also the only way to turn 2FA off that the help center describes. It needs identity proof (AltCoinTrader):

• a color photo of you holding your ID next to your face, against a light, plain background, looking straight at the camera;
• an original national ID or passport that shows your date of birth, clearly readable and not a photocopy;
• an original handwritten note with "AltCoinTrader.co.za", the current date and "2FA Removal".

The article doesn't say where to send these or how long the review takes. The support address listed elsewhere in the help center is support@altcointrader.co.za (AltCoinTrader). AltCoinTrader asks you to turn 2FA back on soon after removal. More in Lost the phone with your authenticator app?

Official AltCoinTrader help

• How to enable 2FA on my AltCoinTrader account?
• How do I log in with 2FA active on my AltCoinTrader account?
• What is Google Authenticator?
• My 2FA is not working on my Apple device?
• How do I disable 2FA on my AltCoinTrader account?
• What are the account levels?
• How do I withdraw crypto?
• How do I withdraw Rands from my account?
• General questions