Top Password Managers

We've all been there.

You're prompted to enter the password, but you're drawing a blank. You then type in 10 different variations of your last known password, but nope, you're still locked out.

You're not alone. According to a study by Digital Information World, 78% of people had to reset a password for one personal account in the last 90 days. 57% had to reset their password for a work account.

You can hardly be blamed for forgetting your password, though. After all, new research suggests that an average user now has around 100 passwords to remember. These range from the seemingly trivial like Quora, Reddit, Facebook, and Tinder to the critically important online banking, work emails, and proprietary business accounts. If these numbers seem incredulously high for you, it's likely because you do one of these things:

• You use the same password for everything.
• You're in the habit of reusing passwords.
• You rely on password chains and browser-based autofill features.

Yes, it's convenient, but it's a bad idea at a time when cybercriminals are getting smarter and smarter every day.

Here's why you should break these bad password habits now:

• It increases your device's vulnerability to password-guessing and brute force attacks.
• Recycling passwords for personal and business accounts means hackers only need to crack one password to breach the entire network.
• Hackers can use a phishing attack to retrieve your saved credentials.
• You risk jeopardizing not just your financial information but also personal data such as your photos, videos, addresses, and more.
• You're making yourself more susceptible to cyberattacks and identity theft.

Okay, I get it! So what now? Do I have to memorize all my passwords? Do I write everything down on a piece of paper and keep it locked in a safe deposit box?

Of course, not! You don't have to go through so much trouble to keep your passwords safe from prying eyes. This is where a password manager comes in. It's a software application designed to generate, store, and manage online credentials in one secure place. You can finally kiss those sticky notes goodbye!

What can a password manager do, and what are the benefits?

• Remember just one password for everything. A strong password usually requires symbols, punctuations, long phrases, and a mix of upper and lower-case letters. It's difficult to remember if you have ten passwords or more. Using a password manager, you only need to remember one! The password manager stores all of your passwords in an encrypted digital vault, protected by a master password.
• Generate random passwords. Most password managers come with a password generator that helps generate random passwords that are far stronger than what you can come up with off the top of your head. This prevents you from repeating passwords you've used in the past or creating weak passwords that include your pet's name, birthdays, a part of your home address, and more.
• Fast access to passwords and logins. No more fumbling with login screens and password recovery. Password managers let you type a single password and then have each access point automatically populated with a username and password. Some also have an auto-fill feature for quick and easy login to your favorite websites.
• It works across multiple devices. Depending on which service you choose, password managers work on various devices and platforms. Changes automatically sync across your preferred devices, so you'll have access to your logins no matter where you are.
• Store more than just passwords. Most password managers go beyond merely storing your logins and passwords. It can also store answers to password recovery questions, credit card information, membership cards, medical prescriptions, shopping profiles, notes, and other sensitive information.
• It helps boost cybersecurity with usage reports, activity logs, and dark web monitoring. Password managers can also alert you to potential security breaches. Keeper Security, for example, comes with a business dark web monitoring tool that scans for passwords that may have been exposed or compromised. Dashlane also features a dynamic Password Health dashboard that alerts users for weak or passwords that have been reused. Roboform is a password manager that offers a two-step verification as an added layer of security.
• Securely manage and share passwords. For those situations when multiple people need access to a single account (family, teams, and enterprises), a password manager provides an option to control who has access to passwords, manage, or change passwords when necessary.
• Manage what happens to your digital accounts after you die. Some password managers feature emergency access that lets you specify designated contacts that can request access to your account in case of an emergency, tragic event, or death.