Password Manager

Keeping your passwords as secure as possible is the first and most important step in maintaining internet security against identity thieves and data breaches. A password manager is a digital replacement for the sticky note you might have your passwords written down on now, but it’s also more than that. Password managers generate strong new passwords when you create accounts or change a password, and they store your passwords in one place, protecting them with a single strong master password. If you remember your master password, your password manager will remember everything else.  

Because your master password is responsible for protecting all your account information, you must make it complex and difficult to guess. But because you’ll need to type it in when you start using a new computer or phone or when you need to log in to change account settings, it should also be easy for you to remember; otherwise, you could lock yourself out of your account. 

The Good: 

• No need to keep track: A password-protected vault of passwords simplifies access to websites that require logins. Memorizing one master password is easier than memorizing a few passwords or, worse yet, dozens of passwords.  

• Strong by default: If your password manager automatically generates a hard-to-guess password for each site you visit, it can prevent you from repeatedly using simple-to-guess passwords.  
• The Vault is More Secure than your Sticky Note:  Password managers protect the data they store using encryption, which scrambles data so that it’s tougher for cybercrooks and others to hack.  And by using a copy/paste process, even a crook with a “key logger” is thwarted. 

The Bad: 

• No such thing as perfect protection: If a hacker or someone else learns the master password, all of the passwords stored there could be stolen. 
• Forgetting your vault password: What happens if you forget the all-important master password? Typically, you’ll be locked out of the password manager’s database. There are ways to get back in, but the worst-case scenario is that you’ll then be forced to reset the password for every account included in your “vault.”  

No matter how memorable your master password is, you should write it down and store it somewhere very safe, and offline, to make sure you don’t forget or lose it. 

In sum, setting up a password manager may take anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes, and it can provide a lifetime of convenience by automatically generating, storing, and filling passwords. Using a password manager helps you maintain a more secure presence on the web, protect your bank account, email, and social media activities from intrusion by hackers. Best of all, you gain peace of mind. 

Where to go for more information or to get in contact with the CCP Team?  

Please visit our website (www.ccpteam.com) or check us out on social media if you’re interested in learning more.  As always, calling our office will result in hearing a friendly voice that is happy to discuss any questions you may have.  We’ll keep pushing in the direction of excellence and look forward to those continuing partnerships that drive IT Success for Business.