About two-factor authentication
Two-factor authentication is designed to provide additional security for your BlackBerry® device. Two-factor authentication requires an item that you have (for example, a smart card) and an item that you know (for example, a pass phrase). You can also use the connection to your smart card reader to authenticate, without requiring a smart card to be present.
You can use a smart card for two-factor authentication when you unlock your device, or you can use a software token for two-factor authentication when you use your device with RSA® software as a hardware token. If you have a Wi-Fi® enabled BlackBerry device, you can also use a software token for two-factor authentication when you log in to a VPN or connect to a Wi-Fi network.
Depending on your BlackBerry device model and the two-factor authentication settings that you choose, you might need to type your pass phrase when you perform one of the following actions: