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Lost your LinkedIn 2FA secret key? Here's how to reset it

If you've lost the LinkedIn 2FA secret key required by Infinite Login, you can generate a new one by turning Two-Step Verification off and back on in your LinkedIn account.

Written by Vincent Maillard de la Morandais

The 2FA secret key is what lets Infinite Login keep your LinkedIn account connected at all times. LinkedIn only displays it once, when you first set up your Authenticator app. If you've closed that screen without saving the key, no worries — you can generate a new one in a few minutes.

What does the 2FA secret key look like?

It is not the 6-digit code your Authenticator app shows every 30 seconds. The secret key is a long string of characters (typically 16 to 32 letters and digits) that LinkedIn shows next to the QR code during setup. That string is what Kalent asks you to paste into the Enter your 2FA secret key field.

LinkedIn does not let you view it again after the initial setup — that's a security choice on their side. The only way to obtain a new one is to reset Two-Step Verification.

Step 1 — Turn Two-Step Verification off on LinkedIn

  1. Sign in to LinkedIn in your browser.

  2. Click your profile photo in the top right, then click Settings & Privacy.

  3. In the left menu, select Sign in & Security.

  4. Find the Two-Step Verification section and click Change.

  5. Click Turn off. LinkedIn will ask for your password to confirm.

Step 2 — Turn 2FA back on with an authenticator app

  1. Still in Two-Step Verification, click Turn on.

  2. Pick the Authenticator App option. Do not use the SMS / phone option — it is not compatible with Infinite Login.

  3. LinkedIn now displays a QR code and a text string right next to it. That string is your 2FA secret key.

Step 3 — Save the key this time around

Before closing this screen, keep the key somewhere safe in one of these ways:

  • Copy the key as text and paste it into a password manager (1Password, Bitwarden, etc.).

  • Take a screenshot of the LinkedIn page for safekeeping.

  • Scan the QR code with your authenticator app (Google Authenticator, Authy, Microsoft Authenticator…) so it keeps generating the 6-digit codes you need to log in to LinkedIn manually.

Ideally, do all three — the secret key and the authenticator app cover two different use cases.

Step 4 — Update Kalent with the new key

  1. Open Kalent and go to Settings → LinkedIn.

  2. Start the Infinite Login setup (click Connect on LinkedIn card > classic or sales nav > infinite).

  3. Enter your LinkedIn email, your LinkedIn password, and paste the new 2FA secret key into the last field.

  4. Click Connect.

Stuck on a step?

If the new key is rejected by Kalent, double-check that:

  • You pasted the secret key and not the 6-digit code from your Authenticator app.

  • No extra spaces slipped in at the start or end of the string.

  • You picked the Authenticator App option on LinkedIn, not the SMS one.

If the issue persists, reach out to Kalent support via the chat in the bottom-right corner — we'll be happy to help you finalize the connection.

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