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Setting Up Email and Password for OTP Sending

1. Create a New Email Account (Optional)​

If you don't want to use your personal email, create a new email account (e.g., Gmail) specifically for sending OTP codes.

2. Enable Less Secure Apps (For Gmail)​

To allow your application to send emails using Gmail, you need to enable "Less Secure Apps" access.

  1. Log in to your Google Account Security page.
  2. Scroll down to "Less secure app access".
  3. Click "Turn on access (not recommended)".
  4. Confirm by enabling the toggle.

Note: If you have 2-Step Verification enabled, you must generate an App Password instead.

3. Retrieve Email Credentials​

  • EMAIL: Your email address (e.g., example@gmail.com)
  • EMAIL_PASSWORD: Your email account password or App Password if 2FA is enabled.

4. Update Your .env File​

Add the following environment variables to your .env file:

EMAIL=your-email@example.com
EMAIL_PASSWORD=your-email-password

Important: Keep your .env file secure and do not share it publicly.

5. Test Email Sending​

Use a simple Node.js script to verify the email configuration:

const nodemailer = require("nodemailer");
require("dotenv").config();

const transporter = nodemailer.createTransport({
  service: "gmail",
  auth: {
    user: process.env.EMAIL,
    pass: process.env.EMAIL_PASSWORD,
  },
});

const mailOptions = {
  from: process.env.EMAIL,
  to: "recipient@example.com",
  subject: "OTP Test",
  text: "Your OTP is 123456",
};

transporter.sendMail(mailOptions, (error, info) => {
  if (error) {
    console.error(error);
  } else {
    console.log("Email sent: " + info.response);
  }
});

Run the script using:

node test-email.js

If configured correctly, you should receive an email with an OTP test message.

Now, your application is ready to send OTP codes via email!