Shy.gg 2FA: how to set up an authenticator app

Shy.gg is an invite-based image and file host. People mostly use it with ShareX, which sends screenshots and files straight to their Shy.gg account and gives back a short link (Shy.gg). Your account holds those uploads, your ShareX keys and your settings. Two-factor authentication (2FA) is optional, but Shy.gg's documentation strongly recommends it for every user. The only method it documents is an authenticator app that makes 6-digit codes (Shy.gg).

There's one catch before you start: Shy.gg makes you verify your email address first. This guide uses Authenticator App - Novaz on iPhone, but any authenticator app works the same way.

How we checked this guide: the Shy.gg steps come from Shy.gg's own documentation page and its screenshots, linked below, which we read on October 24, 2026. We haven't tested them on a Shy.gg account, so a label may differ slightly. The Novaz steps are checked against the app, version 1.0.5.

Before you start: verify your email

Until your email address is verified, the Shy.gg dashboard shows a notice under the sidebar with a verify your email address link. Shy.gg won't let you turn on 2FA before that (Shy.gg). Use the link, confirm the address from your inbox, and then come back to the dashboard.

Turn on 2FA with an authenticator app

Shy.gg's setup page describes these steps (Shy.gg):

1. Sign in to the Shy.gg dashboard and open Account in the sidebar.
2. Find the Two-Factor Authentication box and select Enable.
3. A window called Setup Two Factor Authentication opens. It shows a QR code and, under it, the secret key as text that you can copy.
4. In Novaz, tap +, then Scan QR code, and point the camera at the QR code. If you're on the same iPhone, take a screenshot and tap +, then Choose a photo. See scanning a QR code on the same iPhone.
5. If you'd rather type the key, tap +, then Enter key manually. Type Shy.gg as the Service, your username as the Account if you like, and the key as the Setup key. See What is a 2FA setup key?
6. Back in Shy.gg, type the 6-digit code from Novaz under Enter 6 Digit Code, then select Enable.

The written steps call the setting "Two Factor Authentication" without the hyphen, while the screenshots on the same page show Two-Factor Authentication. Look for either.

Shy.gg's page doesn't say how often its codes change. The key in its screenshot is 32 characters long, which is fine for typing by hand, but scanning the QR code is still the safer choice because it carries the code settings along with the key.

Backup codes and recovery

Shy.gg's documentation stops at the setup screen. It doesn't mention backup or recovery codes, a second method, a way to turn 2FA off, or what to do if you lose the device with your codes (Shy.gg). We couldn't find anything on these points in its terms or privacy policy either.

That matters with Novaz, because its keys exist only on your iPhone unless you've made a Novaz backup. If Shy.gg gives you backup codes after you select Enable, save them somewhere away from your phone, such as a password manager or on paper. See 2FA backup codes.

If Shy.gg rejects your code

Shy.gg's docs have no advice for a rejected code. Most often the iPhone's clock is off. Open Settings > General > Date & Time and turn on Set Automatically. Novaz also warns you when the clock is 15 seconds or more off. Other causes are in Authenticator code not working?

New phone or lost phone

If you use Novaz's iCloud backup or a backup file, you can restore Shy.gg on the new iPhone with your other accounts. Without one, a new phone means adding Shy.gg again. Shy.gg doesn't document how to remove an authenticator or switch to a new one, so don't wipe the old phone until you've either found a way to redo the setup on the Account page or asked support (below). See How to transfer your authenticator app to a new iPhone.

If you've already lost the phone and have no backup codes or Novaz backup, the only contact Shy.gg's documentation gives is its support email, support@shy.gg (Shy.gg). Write from the email address on your account, since it's the one you verified before setting up 2FA. Shy.gg doesn't say what proof it asks for or how long a reset takes. More in Lost the phone with your authenticator app?

Official Shy.gg help

• Security
• Introduction
• shy.gg