Password Managers

Let us discuss the importance of using strong, complex passwords, and being diligent to use different passwords for everything. Most of us can agree that is good advice, but many of us don't follow it. The reason is simple: it is too hard to remember all those passwords!

I understand completely; I personally have about 300 passwords right now! The old wisdom was to never write down your passwords and never record them ANYWHERE. However, the big threat to your data today is not someone who finds your password hidden under your keyboard, but someone on the other side of the world cracking or guessing your password. So to make complex and unique passwords possible, many security professionals recommend the use of a "password manager" software or service.

Password managers are apps used to safely store ALL of your passwords and keep them safely encrypted in one place. Most are offered by providers who will store the data in the cloud so that you can sync it to all your mobile devices and PCs. Many integrate with your web browser(s) to learn your passwords and then log you in to websites automatically in the future, or to automatically create and remember random passwords for new sites when you create an account (or update your password).

There is, of course, a certain amount of risk in "putting all your eggs in one basket," and in putting this data out in a cloud-based service. However, the advantage of enabling the use of unique, complex generally outweighs these. Even when providers have experienced breaches (as the leading service, LastPass, has multiple times), the providers' strong security measures have prevented the compromise of users' password data.

So if you struggle with too many passwords, consider adopting a password manager. The following article is a good comparison of the leading apps in this area:
http://lifehacker.com/5529133/five-best-password-managers ​

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