Wondering if other people use password managers?

sc_rhino

sc_rhino

Member
With all of the website breaches that have been happening, I was wondering if anyone uses a password manager? I've been using mine for over 5 years, and I thought it might be a good idea to tell people about the idea of having one.
 
My passwords are stored in the toughest computer and website ever......... my brain
 
daddyusmaximus said:
OK, I'll bite, what's a password manager?



No, I'm not a computer expert.
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A password manager is a program that manages passwords for you. You typically have to remember just one master password to unlock the program, which a lot people are uneasy about this. But myself having over 150 website logins ranging from forums to banking, email, etc, I dont want to have to remember all of those passwords. I do remember a few, Apple ID, Dropbox, and my master password.
 
I'm in the computer world by occupation. I think password managers have their place. Google Chrome will detect when you log in to a site and offer to remember the password for you. I recommend using that for anything that doesn't have sensitive data.

For sites that do have sensitive data, I'm not a fan of any password manager. You've effectively taken all the security of all those sites and created a single point if failure: your laptop. Once they're in that, they'd have everything. And getting into a laptop isn't that difficult.

There are services out there that will allow you to remote wipe your laptop should it fall into the wrong hands. A worthwhile investment if there's sensitive information on it and you tend to travel or lose things.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°
http://wayalife.com/showthread.php?p=621404
 
For anything that matters (Banks and credit cards, work stuff, etc) I use keepass. Everything else that doesn't matters all share the same user and password.

So Eddie, if you're reading this, now you know how to hack into my other forum accounts lol.

Sent from my galaxy s5 but it would've been quicker to drive my jeep there and tell you.
 
chitown35 said:
For anything that matters (Banks and credit cards, work stuff, etc) I use keepass. Everything else that doesn't matters all share the same user and password.

So Eddie, if you're reading this, now you know how to hack into my other forum accounts lol.

Sent from my galaxy s5 but it would've been quicker to drive my jeep there and tell you.
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Actually not true. Computer systems don't store your password in plain text specifically for this reason. The software "hashes" the password using an algorithm and then stores that. Each time you log in, it hashes what you typed in and compares it to the hashed version stored in the database. It's a one way hash so there's no way to reverse the original password back out. So if you look in Eddie's database, you won't see plain text passwords ("password1", "Eddie4Life", etc) but their hashed equivalents ("jsj73hsv9&#u", "72+#jsieb$u$j2", etc)

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http://wayalife.com/showthread.php?p=621404
 
scrhino said:
A password manager is a program that manages passwords for you. You typically have to remember just one master password to unlock the program, which a lot people are uneasy about this. But myself having over 150 website logins ranging from forums to banking, email, etc, I dont want to have to remember all of those passwords. I do remember a few, Apple ID, Dropbox, and my master password.
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Im in the same boat. Necessary evil. I have way to many to remember without making them the same. Its a roll of the dice I guess.
 
Agree with Granite Crystal on that one. I always uncheck remember my password for this site on both chrome and explorer. The prob with the keychain, thumbdrive, and word doc is access if unsecured. You can get encryptable usb's that would help but if just open to plug and play Id be worried. IDK. The world we live in is sketchy. All someone can do is mitigate risks anymore. If they want you they are going to get you unless you are completely off the grid. Ive used Msecure for a few years now but I also realize its up to me to remain vigilante and routinly change passwords and hope for the best.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using WAYALIFE mobile app
 
GraniteCrystal said:
I'm in the computer world by occupation. I think password managers have their place. Google Chrome will detect when you log in to a site and offer to remember the password for you. I recommend using that for anything that doesn't have sensitive data.

For sites that do have sensitive data, I'm not a fan of any password manager. You've effectively taken all the security of all those sites and created a single point if failure: your laptop. Once they're in that, they'd have everything. And getting into a laptop isn't that difficult.

There are services out there that will allow you to remote wipe your laptop should it fall into the wrong hands. A worthwhile investment if there's sensitive information on it and you tend to travel or lose things.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°
http://wayalife.com/showthread.php?p=621404
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I guess I'm just trying to balance convenience with security. I do know if someone has access to my computer, then I'm probably out of luck, but there is a lot of security that goes into these programs. I think my email accounts are more secure than my banks, because if someone has your email then they could use the reset function on those websites. I also use 2 factor when possible and dont give true answers to those security questions some websites ask.
 
GraniteCrystal said:
Here a few articles everyone should read:
https://www.wired.com/2012/08/apple-amazon-mat-honan-hacking/all/
and the follow-up:
https://www.wired.com/2012/08/mat-honan-data-recovery/all

Long story short: use two factor authentication whenever possible.
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I've read these before, but it does make you stop and think how things can go bad. You have to think like a hacker sometimes and put up defenses where possible. Since I use Google Authenicator on my phone, I dont use 2 factor where I sync my data just in case my phone is lost or out of reach.
 
I store passwords in a spreadsheet and zip it up in 7zip with AES 256 bit encryption and store it on my PC over SSH. That way I only have one password to remember to open it up, and it's a doozy. It may not be the simplest way, but I know no one else has access but me.

GraniteCrystal said:
Long story short: use two factor authentication whenever possible.
Click to expand...

I'll second that as well.
 
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