In today's digital world, we are constantly creating and using passwords. We have passwords for our email accounts, bank accounts, social media accounts, online stores, and many other websites and services. It can be difficult to keep track of all of these passwords, and it is tempting to use the same password for multiple accounts. However, this is a security risk. If one of your passwords is compromised, then all of your accounts that use the same password are also at risk!

A password manager is a software application that helps you to store and manage your passwords securely. It can generate strong passwords for you, and it can also autofill your passwords when you log in to websites and services. This makes it much easier to keep track of your passwords and to keep them secure. Many of them also offer a notes field where you can keep additional information like your security questions and answers.

How Password Managers Work

A password manager works by storing your passwords in an encrypted database. The encryption key is protected by a master password, which is the only password that you need to remember. When you want to log in to a website or service, the password manager will autofill your password for you.

Most password managers also offer additional features, such as:

• The ability to generate strong passwords
• The ability to store other sensitive information, such as credit card numbers and social security numbers
• The ability to share passwords with others
• The ability to audit your passwords to make sure that they are strong and unique

Why You Should Use a Password Manager

There are a lot of reasons why you should use a password manager. Here are just a few:

• It helps you to create and use strong passwords. Strong passwords are difficult for hackers to crack, and they can help to protect your accounts from unauthorized access.
• It makes it easier to keep track of your passwords. You no longer have to remember dozens of different passwords.
• It can help to prevent password reuse. Reusing passwords is a major security risk, and a password manager can help you to avoid doing this.
• It can protect you from phishing attacks. Phishing attacks are a common way for hackers to steal passwords. A password manager can help to protect you from these attacks by autofilling your passwords only for legitimate websites.
• It can make your life easier. A password manager can save you time and hassle by autofilling your passwords and by managing your passwords for you. When you let the program create and remember your passwords for you, you're more likely to use unique, strong passwords everywhere.

How to Choose a Password Manager

There are many different password managers available, so it can be difficult to choose the right one. Here are a few factors to consider when choosing a password manager:

• Security: Make sure that the password manager uses strong encryption and that it has a good track record of security.
• Features: Consider the features that are important to you. Do you need a password manager that can generate strong passwords, store other sensitive information, or share passwords with others?
• Ease of use: The password manager should be easy to use and navigate. You should be able to easily find and access your passwords.
• Price: Password managers can range in price from free to several dollars per month. Choose a password manager and pricing level that fits your budget.

Here are some of the most popular password managers:

• Enpass: Enpass is my personal choice. One of the things I like most about it is that it lets you share your password file among multiple platforms via the Web. Save a password on, say, your desktop, and it become instantly available on your phone, your tablet, your laptop, your Chromebook - you get the idea. You can use whatever Web storage site you like - Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, etc. - because the file is fully encrypted before you upload it. Enpass offers a free plan and paid plans starting at $2 per month.
• LastPass: LastPass is one of the most popular password managers. It is available for Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, and Android. LastPass offers a free plan and paid plans starting at $3 per month.
• 1Password: 1Password is another popular password manager. It is available for Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, and Android. 1Password offers a free trial and paid plans starting at $3 per month.
• Dashlane: Dashlane is a password manager that offers a variety of features, including password generation, password sharing, and a dark web monitoring feature. It is available for Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, and Android. Dashlane offers a free plan and paid plans starting at $3 per month.
• Bitwarden: Bitwarden is a free and open-source password manager. It is available for Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, and Android. Bitwarden offers a variety of features, including password generation, password sharing, and a dark web monitoring feature.
• Keeper: Keeper is a password manager that offers a variety of features, including password generation, password sharing, and a dark web monitoring feature. It is available for Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, and Android. Keeper offers a free plan and paid plans starting at $3 per month.

In your Macintosh operating system

Apple's MacOS includes the Keychain Access app to view and manage your passwords and other confidential information. Of course, if you use a combination of Mac and non-Mac devices, those Keychain passwords will not be available outside the Mac environment.

And, of course, in your browser

Just about every browser will offer to remember your passwords for you as well. But they also are limited. Many won't cross devices, and those that do are often very, very unsecure. Better, in all cases, to use a password manager.

Use one!

A password manager can be your salvation in a world where hackers are becoming not only more common but also more aggressive. While they may be a bit of a pain to set up (having to type in all your passwords for all your sites that first time), you’ll find that, going forward, they’ll not only be easy to manage, but the amount of information you can put in them (including, in the notes field, things like security questions, alternate email addresses, etc.) become quite invaluable.

More importantly, it becomes integral to your estate planning. Being able to share the database with your family means that, if something happens to you, they can access your password manager and get to all your sites to pay bills, cancel subscriptions, etc.

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