Twitter has updated the iOS and Android versions of its mobile apps with new two-factor authentication system to improve security.

The two-factor authentication‘ feature was introduced in May this year after a series of high-profile breaches into its accounts.

Twitter security engineer Alex Smolen said: "Now you can enroll in login verification and approve login requests right from the Twitter app on iOS and Android.

"Simply tap a button on your phone and you’re good to go. This means you don’t have to wait for a text message and then type in the code each time you sign in on twitter.com," Smolen said.

Users should run the latest version of the Twitter app on an Android or iOS device to set up the log-in verification.

Twitter said: "We’re also adding a new photo gallery in search. "Before, when photos were returned in search results, you could swipe through thumbnails and select photos to view full-screen. Now, you can select a new ‘View more photos’ option that will lead you to a photo gallery of all the photos related to that search."

Earlier this month, Twitter’s UK division has modified its policies to deal with abuse and harassment following incidents that highlighted threatening messages sent to users in their Twitter feeds.