What is a password manager you ask? A password manager is a place where you could potentially store all of your online passwords behind one master password. Once a password is stored inside the password manager there is no longer a need to remember it. All you have to do is remember your master password that will grant you access to your vault.
This master password is the only one you need to access all of your passwords used around the Internet. Ensure to use a fairly complex password for your master password because if someone gets into your password safe you are done for! The real power of a password manager is not storing your current passwords for all of your online accounts, but storing new and more complex passwords for your accounts.
For example, if you have never used a password manager before, and would like to take advantage of its full potential, take a look at the following fictitious information about my online accounts:
Facebook - Username: 8018735548 Password: cookies
Hotmail - Username: fred@hotmail.com Password: football
Bank of America - Username: fred.holsten@gmail.com Password: H0rse1
You will notice that the passwords for the above accounts are inherently insecure. If I were to install a password manager, and use it to its full potential, I would use the password generator (found within the password manager) to generate a completely random and complex set of passwords for my online accounts that I never have to remember. It will take a little bit of initial setup to change my online account passwords, but will be time well spent in the long run. Instead of the above scenario, the new passwords would look like the following:
Facebook - Username: 8018735548 Password: xl+x9GPUj|yo
Hotmail - Username: fred@hotmail.com Password: auuL|ec^9?u7
Bank of America - Username: fred.holsten@gmail.com Password: J(iu!2|netY{
The new passwords, found in the second scenario, are a million times better than the ones in the first. Again, you do not need to remember these passwords only the master password that allows you into the Password Manager.
So which one do I choose?
After evaluating dozens of password managers I found that most if not all store user credentials and passwords in the cloud. Call me an extremest, but I am not comfortable with ALL of my passwords to each and every one of my online accounts to be stored anyplace outside of the device I am using. Yes, the encryption used to store passwords in the cloud vendors database is very strong, but if there is a will there is a way.
After much to do, I settled on Password Safe, which stores the password safe locally and no cloud providers are needed to use the service. This solution is even backed and almost completely created by Bruce Schneier, world renowned IT Security expert.
Go to http://passwordsafe.sourceforge.net to download the solution and try it out yourself.
Please watch a tutorial of the software at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=doeQB8fxWUs
Be Smart & Be Safe!
