You need a password manager!
It seems like ages ago when people started to complain about having too many passwords to remember.
“Ohh, how could I possibly remember FIVE passwords?”
Now we have dozens are even hundreds to remember. The promises of a single password to rule them all just haven’t materialized. Sure, there are systems out there that allow you to login with Facebook or Google permissions, but that decision is up to the owner of the site. You can take matters into your own hands by using a password manager, though. Most browsers offer some password storage, but the functionality is limited. A dedicated password manager can give you access in and out of the browser, provides a better interface to manage your stored credentials, and can create extremely strong passwords for you.
And there are plenty to chose from. Here, we focus on three. You may have seen some of these in the past and wondered just what they were.
LastPass (https://www.lastpass.com/) is the most commonly known and used password manager. It offers most functionality for free, with some premium services at cost. It operates as a browser plugin and a mobile application. It allows you to store credentials and easily submit them when visiting a site. It also has a very flexible strong password generator and allows you to store other types of sensitive information. The downside is that LastPass is fairly rigid in how it works. You store an encrypted version of your data at their site in the cloud. While this makes it convenient, it doesn’t sit well with some ultra-security conscious people.
1Password (https://1password.com) is a user-friendly tool that began on Macs and migrated to Windows and Android. As typical of Mac apps the focus was on cleanliness and usability. The biggest difference between 1Password and LastPass is the flexibility in where you keep your data. You can use their cloud storage, you can use your cloud storage (Dropbox or iCloud), or on your local system. 1Password does come at a cost, but that cost is very reasonable and currently $2.99 a month for an individual.
KeePass (http://keepass.info/) is the choice for the open source enthusiasts. It has evolved over many years and is trusted by those who are reluctant to trust anyone. The feature set is smaller than the more mainstream applications, but there are other apps that complement KeePass with additional features. It’s also less user-friendly in setup, but many of the hard-core like it that way. The use it for its openness and adherence to standards. It and most of its add-ons are free.