You may have seen a QR code when you logged into Client Portal. In this article we will cover the steps for activating IBKR Mobile Authentication (IB Key) using that code.

1) Log into Client Portal. You will see a banner recommending that you activate IBKR Mobile Authentication (IB Key) by scanning the accompanying QR Code:

Figure 1

2) On your smartphone, launch the "Camera" app.

Figure 2

3) Point the lens of your smartphone camera towards the QR code. You don't need to "take a picture." When the code is in focus it is automatically captured. If your phone does not seem to recognize the QR code try to move your phone closer or farther away to the QR code in order to gain focus. If your phone does not recognize the QR code, please see the section Possible Issues and solutions at the bottom of this article.

Figure 3

4) If your device was able to read the QR code successfully, you will see a banner on the top of your smartphone screen.

• If the banner asks you to open the IBKR web site on your smartphone browser (as in Figure 4.1), please proceed directly to next step, 5)
• If the banner asks you to open the IBKR Mobile app (as in Figure 4.2), please jump to step 8)

Figure 4.1                                                                                Figure 4.2

5) Tap on the banner on the top of your smartphone screen, asking you to open the IBKR Web site. You will be redirected to the AppStore.

Figure 5

6) Tap the download icon GET to install IBKR Mobile on your phone.

Figure 6

7) Once the installation is complete, do not launch the IBKR Mobile app. Open your camera and again focus on the QR code displayed in Client Portal.

Figure 7

8) Tap on the banner on the top of your screen, asking you to open the IBKR Mobile app.

Figure 8

9) Tap Allow if asked whether to allow or disallow notifications for IBKR Mobile.

Figure 9

10) You will be asked to provide the security element you use to unlock your phone (FaceID, Fingerprint or Passcode).

Figure 10

11) You will receive a message confirming the successful activation of IBKR Mobile Authentication (IB Key). Tap Done to complete the procedure

Figure 11

Possible issues and solutions

• My smartphone did not manage to read the QR code. What should I do?

Make sure you have activated the switch "Scan QR codes" from the Camera Settings of your smartphone.

Figure 12

• My phone activates the front camera. How can I switch to the rear one?

Usually there is a specific button in the camera view to switch from front to rear lenses.

Figure 13

• During the IBKR Mobile Authentication (IB Key) activation, I receive an error message "An error has occurred. Please try again."

Figure 14

This error message may indicate you are attempting to activate an IBKR Mobile Authentication (IB key) instance that is already activated. Please try to log in to the Client Portal again. If you receive a notification on your smartphone once you have entered the credentials and you are able to complete the authentication once you tap on that notification, then your IBKR Mobile Authentication (IB Key) instance is already activated and you no longer need to follow the steps on this article.

Alternatively, the error message may be displayed when the QR code shown in the Client Portal was already used to attempt an activation and is expired. In this case, please log out of the Client Portal and log back in to obtain a fresh QR code.

References:

• See KB2260 for instruction on how to activate and operate IBKR Mobile Authentication (IB Key).
• See KB2748 for instructions on how to recover IBKR Mobile Authentication (IB Key).
• See KB3236 for instructions on how to enable notifications for the IBKR Mobile app.
• See KB3234 for troubleshooting missing IBKR Mobile notifications.
• See KB3073 for instructions on how to migrate the IBKR Mobile Authentication (IB Key) to a new smartphone.