As we wait for a future without passwords, many individuals and organizations still struggle with managing countless login credentials.
A password manager creates an encrypted vault that securely stores credentials, protected by a master password. Most consumer-focused apps can also create unique, random passwords and support safe credential sharing between friends and family members. Some also contain extra perks such as detecting reused passwords and monitoring your accounts for possible data breaches.
1Password
1Password is a password manager that offers an easy sign-up process and a printable digital key for recovering your account in case you forget your master password. The application has apps for macOS, Windows, Linux, Android, and iOS as well as a Chrome extension that enables a user to auto-fill login information on websites and store new credentials in their vault. The tool allows you to create multiple vaults to organize your data for various purposes (personal, work, etc.).
In addition to login information, you can use 1Password to store credit card information, API tokens, crypto wallet recovery seeds, and other sensitive documents or data. The password manager also allows you share to passwords with other users. You can tweak the sharing feature by setting expiry dates, the maximum number of views, and specific email addresses that can access a password. 1Password’s Watchtower feature monitors your account for reused passwords, vulnerable passwords, and potentially compromised accounts.
The application also has a Travel Mode for special circumstances where your devices might fall into unwanted hands. Vaults that you mark as not safe for travel will disappear from your devices when you turn on Travel Mode and reappear when you turn the feature and reconnect to the internet. The password manager offers no free-of-charge plan and instead offers personal ($2.99 per month) and family ($4.99 per month) subscriptions. With the family subscription, you get five premium accounts and the ability to create shared vaults that you can use together.
Bitwarden
Bitwarden offers a full range of standard features including the ability to import data from other password managers, create multiple vaults, share passwords with other users, and sync vaults across multiple devices. One major benefit of Bitwarden is that it has apps for all major operating systems, extensions for nine different browsers, and a command-line interface for writing scripts. Bitwarden is an open-source program, which means you can host it on your own servers if company or industry regulations prevent you from storing your credentials in the public cloud. However, to get the full range of features, you’ll need to purchase a premium license.
While you’ll have to pay in order to use all of the features that Bitwarden has to offer, the thing that really sets Bitwarden apart is the strength of its *free* version, which provides the features that most users typically need. But if you feel the need for more protection, the premium subscription ($10 per year) includes security reports, stronger 2FA (two-factor authentication) options, 1GB of encrypted storage, an OTP (one-time password) generator, and emergency access to your vault by other (nominated) Bitwarden users. Bitwarden also has a family plan ($40 per year) with six accounts, shared password collections, and shared encrypted storage.
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Dashlane
Dashlane is a password manager that provides basic features to store and secure your passwords. This includes creating vaults, generating passwords, filling online forms, and importing data from other password managers. However, its free plan is quite limited, as it only works on one device.
For more advanced features, Dashlane offers a couple of paid tiers. The advanced tier, which costs $2.75 per month, removes the device limit and adds a service that monitors the dark web for breached passwords and compromised accounts. The premium plan, which costs $4.99 per month, adds VPN support to keep your internet browsing safe and secure. Meanwhile, the family plan, which costs $7.49 per month, provides 10 premium accounts and a dashboard to manage accounts and shared resources.
One downside of Dashlane is that it doesn’t have a desktop application. This means PC users must do everything through the web portal and browser extensions. However, the tool does have mobile apps for Android and iOS.
Dashlane allows you to share passwords with other Dashlane users and set limits to what kind of access they will have to your credentials. The tool also offers a strong emergency access feature, which allows you to specify a contact who can assume ownership of your account in case you lose access. You can also specify a waiting period to accept or reject the user’s request to access your vault.
Overall, Dashlane is a solid password manager with many useful features, including VPN support, dark web monitoring, and strong emergency access options. However, its free plan is quite limited, and its premium plans are relatively expensive.
The long-awaited password-less future is yet to arrive, so individuals and enterprises are still stuck with the problem of how to manage their countless, proliferating login credentials. Thankfully, tech users are investing in password management utilities to protect themselves across the wild worldwide web.
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