Open
Sesame
Your brain has
better things to
do than store
secure passwords.
Offload the job
to a dedicated
password manager,
which will keep
your login data
synced and
protected across
all your devices.
—Scott Gilbertson
WHY NOT JUST
USE YOUR
BROWSER?
Yes, your web browser
can store and autofill
passwords for you. So
why not just do that?
Because storing pass-
words in your browser
is a terrible idea! If other
people (like the system
admin at the office) have
access to your computer,
they can open Chrome’s
settings tab and see all of
your passwords in plain-
text. Also, dedicated
apps can generate strong
passwords for you and
autofill any passwords
outside the browser, like
in your banking or shop-
ping apps.
APP PACK
1PASSWORD
The most user-friendly
service of this bunch,
1Password seamlessly
integrates with login win-
dows to autofill pass-
words across all your
browsers and apps. This
is especially true on iOS,
where the procedure is
smoother than it is on
other platforms. Features
like Travel Mode, which
automatically deletes
sensitive data from
devices before you go on
a trip, and Watchtower,
which identifies weak or
reused passwords, help
justify the cost: $36 a year
for one user, $60 for the
whole family.
DASHLANE
A comprehensive, step-
by-step setup makes
Dashlane the best choice
for those new to pass-
word managers. The free
tier securely stores your
passwords on one device.
Shelling out $5 a month
syncs your encrypted info
across multiple devices
and earns you features
like Site Breach Alerts—
Dashlane monitors the
web to make sure your
personal info isn’t being
sold on the black market.
If it is, the app notifies you
and helps you change any
compromised passwords.
LASTPASS
LastPass made its name
by handing out free
accounts, and those are
fine. However, you should
upgrade to the paid option
($36 a year for individuals,
$48 for families) for the
ability to securely share
passwords and other sen-
sitive information with
your partner or work-
mates. Emergency Access,
also a premium feature,
allows someone you trust
(like a family member) to
get into your account in an
urgent situation.
BITWARDEN
Bitwarden is the most
transparently secure
password manager we
tested; it’s built on open
source code that’s subject
to regular security audits.
The app is also free,
making it a good choice
for the password-man-
ager curious. Advanced
users like the ability to
study the code, and they
can even host Bitwar-
den on their own server.
The free account has no
limitations, but premium
accounts ($10 a year)
offer extras like
support for logging in
with a YubiKey and
advice on strengthening
your passwords.
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GADGET LAB → SECURITY
