Enabling multi-factor authentication for the Azure portal

Question

Is it possible to enable multi-factor authentication for getting access to the Azure portal, https://portal.azure.com?

I know there is an MFA server resource in Azure itself, but my understanding is that this is for Azure hosted applications/resources. I initially want to enable MFA for getting access to the portal itself, before setting it up for the different resources themselves in Azure.

Solution

Yes, you can.

For example here they say

Add protection for Azure administrator accounts

Multi-Factor Authentication adds a layer of security to your Azure administrator account at no additional cost. When turned on, you need to confirm your identity to spin up a virtual machine, manage storage, or use other Azure services.

Here is one of step-by-step guides.

UPD Feb 2019

Azure is constantly evolving, so many answers and related articles quickly become outdated.

As it is now, MFA is not a free option. I would start reading this Microsoft page for details, in particular:

Multi-Factor Authentication comes as part of the following offerings:

• Azure Active Directory Premium licenses
  • Azure MFA Service (Cloud)
  • Azure MFA Server
• Multi-Factor Authentication for Office 365
• Azure Active Directory Global Administrators

Comments

[Ricky Keane]

Thanks Lanorkin, the second link is exactly what I was looking for.

[Lukos]

I must have missed it. All of the links I can find don't talk about securing the portal, only adding an MFA provider to Azure and enabling it for any users at cost.

[Lanorkin]

@Lukos and other downvoters - question is not about "is it free or not". It's about "Is is it possible to enable?" and answer is yes, it is surely possible. I do use mobile app mentioned to authenticate to portal everyday, so I'm pretty sure in "Yes, you can".

[oflahero]

I'm coming to this late, but am I reading all this right? To enable 2FA when signing into your Azure admin portal - which can be your whole business - you need to pay extra, and set it up yourself? Something that is actively encouraged by any reputable service provider (Google, Dropbox, etc.) and is available on their security settings pages? I'm certain I'm missing something here.

[johnstaveley]

It doesn't appear you can add in MULTI-FACTOR AUTH PROVIDER anymore. You need to buy azure active directory premium 2 at £7/month/user

[Edward]

At this time MS does want you to pay > 7 euro a user a month for security the should provide out of the box.

[Vincent Nikkelen]

On top of the page, Microsoft states: Important Baseline policies are being deprecated. See What's new in Azure Active Directory? for more information.