Opinion: You should use a password manager

This week a reader named Nancy wrote to me.

“Can you explain how password managers work and what the different options are? I have a Windows computer and an Apple iPad and iPhone. Do I need to use the same browser on all my devices? Do I need a separate app to store my passwords? How do they work with all the different apps I need to log into?”

Password managers are great, and I hope that after reading this article you decide to start using one.

Their job is to help you create, remember, and enter passwords wherever passwords are required.

You can use a variety of methods to remember your passwords. Writing them down in a safe place is the most basic password manager. For this method, I would recommend keeping them in a small notebook that is somewhere easy to access, but probably not right next to your computer.

If your home is ever broken into, you don’t want to make it easy for scammers to access your online accounts. I keep my physical password list in Notes app on my phone and synced it with a cloud storage service that I can access from any phone, tablet, or computer.

You’ve probably noticed that your web browser offers to remember your passwords. That’s not a bad thing if others don’t have access to your devices. Browsers like Google Chrome let you create accounts so you can use that login on your phone, tablet, and computer, and your passwords will be synced so you can use them on all your devices.

However, these browsers cannot enter passwords in other applications.

Password managers are applications that allow you to store and use passwords. When you set one up, you’ll be asked to create a “master password” that will be used to access all of your saved passwords. In theory, the master password is the only one you’ll need to remember.

You can use a password manager to store and back up your existing passwords, or you can let the password manager create very strong passwords to replace all the passwords you already use.

Letting a password manager create passwords for you is a big step that I haven’t tried yet.

If you want recommendations, look into 1Password, Last Pass, or Bitwarden when you start looking for which one to try.

Apple has announced that a new password manager will be released in the next few weeks alongside iOS 18 and macOS 18. It will work on Macs, iPhones, and iPads. The company also said that Windows users will be able to use it through the Windows version of iTunes.

I’ll try the Apple Passwords app and write about it in a month or two. – Tribune News Service