Woodforest National Bank 2FA: how to set up an authenticator app
By the Novaz team · Updated October 29, 2026
Novaz steps checked against version 1.0.5
On this page
Woodforest National Bank calls its two-factor options multi-factor authentication. Without any of them, Online Banking falls back on the security questions you picked when you enrolled. You can replace those questions with text-message codes or with an authenticator app, which Woodforest calls a Mobile Authenticator (Woodforest). The app can only be set up in Online Banking on the web, although the codes then work in the Mobile Banking app too.
Woodforest's enrollment guide also says you need multi-factor authentication before you can use Bill Pay, Mobile Deposits, Western Union and Debit Card Management (Woodforest). That guide dates from April 2020, so check whether the rule still applies when you sign in.
This guide uses Authenticator App - Novaz on iPhone. Woodforest says it has tested Microsoft Authenticator and Google Authenticator, and that any app following the TOTP standard should work, so Novaz and other authenticator apps follow the same steps.
How we checked this guide: the Woodforest steps come from Woodforest's Online & Mobile Banking Security page and its Online Banking enrollment guide (a PDF from April 2020), both linked below, which we read on October 21, 2026. We haven't tested them on a Woodforest 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
From Woodforest's security page and the screenshots in its enrollment guide (Woodforest, Woodforest):
- Sign in to Online Banking at online.woodforest.com on a computer.
- Open the Security tab and choose Manage Mobile Authenticator.
- Skip Step 1: Install an authenticator application if you already have Novaz. Under Step 2: Add your authenticator key, Woodforest shows a QR code (its newer page calls it a barcode) and a Manual Key. In Novaz, tap +, then Scan QR code, and point the camera at the screen. If you're on the same iPhone, take a screenshot and use Choose a photo instead. See scanning a QR code on the same iPhone.
- If you can't scan, tap +, then Enter key manually in Novaz. Type "Woodforest" as the Service and the manual key as the Setup key. See What is a 2FA setup key?
- Under Step 3: Verify your current code, give the device a name if asked, type the current code from Novaz into Current Authenticator Code, and click Submit.
The 2020 guide notes that the QR code and key change each time you load or refresh the page. Finish the setup in one go: if the page reloads, delete the half-added entry in Novaz and scan the new code.
Signing in afterwards
Woodforest asks for an authenticator code every time you sign in to Online Banking, on a page it calls the Security Challenge. Type the code into the Authenticator Code field. Woodforest says its codes usually change every 30 seconds (Woodforest).
If you also have text-message codes turned on, the authenticator app wins. Online Banking accepts only the app's code at the challenge, so a text won't help you. To go back to texts, you have to turn the app off first.
Using Quicken, QuickBooks or another app that reads your bank data? Woodforest warns that some of them stop syncing once multi-factor authentication is on. Its answer is a Limited Access Password, a view-only password for each of those apps, created under Security > Manage Limited Access Passwords (Woodforest).
No backup codes
Neither Woodforest page mentions backup or recovery codes. Your fallback is the security questions, which come back only when Woodforest removes the authenticator for you (below). If that iPhone is gone and you have no Novaz backup (iCloud backup or a backup file) to restore, Woodforest's phone line is your only way back in.
If Woodforest rejects your code
Woodforest's pages don't cover rejected codes. If you have more than one Online Banking profile, each has its own key, so use the code for the profile you're signing in to. Then check the iPhone's clock: Settings > General > Date & Time > Set Automatically. Novaz warns you when the clock is 15 seconds or more off. More causes are in Authenticator code not working?
Changing phones
Woodforest lets you use the same authenticator on more than one device. While you can still sign in, go back to Security > Manage Mobile Authenticator to get the QR code or key and add it to the new phone. Woodforest's pages don't say whether this replaces the key on your old phone, given that the key changes when the page reloads. Sign in with the new phone's code before you wipe the old one. If you have a Novaz iCloud backup or backup file, restoring it on the new iPhone brings the Woodforest entry over too, without a new scan. See How to transfer your authenticator app to a new iPhone.
If you lose your authenticator
Call Woodforest toll-free at 1-877-968-7962. Woodforest says it will remove the authenticator and put your security questions back as the sign-in check. The same call works if you just don't have the phone with you (Woodforest). The page doesn't say what Woodforest will ask to confirm your identity or how long it takes. You can set the app up again afterwards. See Lost the phone with your authenticator app?
Turning it off
Go to Security > Manage Mobile Authenticator and follow the steps to remove it. Woodforest asks you to do this in Online Banking before deleting the app or the entry from your phone. In Novaz, open the account and tap Remove account only once Woodforest has confirmed the removal.
