MARCH 2020 • TECH ADVISOR 75A password manager relieves the burden of thinking
up and memorizing unique, complex logins – the
hallmark of a secure password. It allows you to safely
share those logins with others when necessary. And
because these tools encrypt your login info in a virtual
vault – either locally or in the cloud – and lock it with
a single master password, they protect the passwords
themselves. If you’re looking to up your security game,
a password manager is the way to go.
But password managers vary widely in their
capabilities and cost, so we compared the most
popular. All support Windows, macOS, Android, and
iOS, as well as the major browsers. And all will let you
syncyourdataacrossmultipledevices,thoughyou
mayhave pay extra for the privilege.
What to look for
At their most basic, password managers capture your
username and password – usually via a browser plugin
- when you log in to a website, and then automatically
fill in your credentials when you return to that site. They
store all your passwords in an encrypted database,
often referred to as a ‘vault’, which you protect with a
single master password.
Of course, most password managers do much more
than this and many extend protection beyond your
login credentials to other types of personal data. We
narrowed it down to a few essential features that we
looked for and you should too:
Password generation: You’ve been reminded ad
nauseam that the strongest passwords are long,