# Recommend a password manager please
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [January 8, 2014, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244 "2014-01-08T04:20:27Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Peanuthead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peanuthead)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/1 "2014-01-08T04:20:27Z")
I know the subject has come up before but I just did a search and received no results.
Anyway, since the SDMB has been hacked recently I’m giving some serious thought about downloading a PM. Can somebody recommend one that is user friendly, reliable, and if possible free? TIA
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### Author:  [@tellyworth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tellyworth)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/2 "2014-01-08T04:25:21Z")
Lastpass and Keepass are good. 1Password is also good, but it’s not free.
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### Author:  [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/3 "2014-01-08T04:30:34Z")
I use LastPass;[here’s a Lifehacker article](http://lifehacker.com/lastpass-updates-with-a-new-design-shared-passwords-a-1458166024) describing some of its latest features. I pay a small yearly subscription fee but IIRC I think that’s for online storage of encrypted data or something like that.
[Article with discussion of security of password managers.](http://lifehacker.com/5944969/which-password-manager-is-the-most-secure)
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### Author:  [@Peanuthead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peanuthead)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/4 "2014-01-08T05:10:16Z")
The articles were a good overview of the products but can you clarify a few things for me?
Sometimes I use IE and sometimes I use Chrome. Will I have to do everything twice when setting up the manager? And when adding a new site/password in IE can I return to it and log in on Chrome the next day?
If I go to my brother’s house and get on his computer will I be locked out of any websites that require my password?
Can the pw files be backed up in case my computer crashes or the company goes down the tubes?
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### Author:  [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/5 "2014-01-08T05:15:20Z")
I use lastpass, and they have plugins for both IE and Chrome, and can import your saved passwords/usernames from both automatically to your vault. So no problems there. Changing them all to secure, independent passwords does take some time, but LastPass plugin (which is free) can do it for you and then remember the new password automatically in both Chrome or IE.
Trying to log into your websites on a computer that does not have a lastpass plugin requires you to navigate to [www.lastpass.com](http://www.lastpass.com) website first, log in, and then copy and paste your passwords from each website. I did this a lot on a trip to Oregon when I was on my dad’s computer. It does add to the time it takes to log into the websites and is a bit of a hassle. But it works. I also have a lastpass app on my cellphone (this is not free and requires a yearly subscription) that does all that kind of stuff on your phone/tablet as well.
I highly recommend LastPass.
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### Author:  [@Giraffe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giraffe)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/6 "2014-01-08T05:26:24Z")
I’ve been using [DashLane](https://www.dashlane.com/en) for the past few months, and it’s pretty slick. It will automatically harvest all your stored passwords from your web browser and guide you through changing them, based on how often you reuse them and how strong they are. There are browser extensions that will autofill login and personal information fields for you, if you want. It also has free apps for all the major mobile OSes that are easy to use.
There is a free version and a premium version. The premium version lets you sync across devices (which is handy) and gives you web access to all your stored passwords. [Here is a referral link](https://www.dashlane.com/en/cs/3baffa9a) that gives anyone who signs up (and me) six months of Premium free.
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### Author:  [@Peanuthead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peanuthead)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/7 "2014-01-08T05:28:18Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#):
>
> I use lastpass, and they have plugins for both IE and Chrome, and can import your saved passwords/usernames from both automatically to your vault. So no problems there. Changing them all to secure, independent passwords does take some time, but LastPass plugin (which is free) can do it for you and then remember the new password automatically in both Chrome or IE.
>
> **Yay**! 🙂
>
> Trying to log into your websites on a computer that does not have a lastpass plugin requires you to navigate to [www.lastpass.com](http://www.lastpass.com) website first, log in, and then copy and paste your passwords from each website. I did this a lot on a trip to Oregon when I was on my dad’s computer. It does add to the time it takes to log into the websites and is a bit of a hassle. But it works. I also have a lastpass app on my cellphone (this is not free and requires a yearly subscription) that does all that kind of stuff on your phone/tablet as well.
>
> \*\*Yeah, looks like kind of a hassle but I guess I can deal with that once in a while. I don’t use other PCs often. And my cellphone is about one step up from a rotary dial so I don’t need the extra app.
> \*\*
>
> I highly recommend LastPass.
**With everyone recommending LastPass I think I’ll give that one a shot.
Thanks all!**
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### Author:  [@Just\_Ed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Ed)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/8 "2014-01-08T05:57:56Z")
I use LastPass too, and they also have [bookmarklets](https://helpdesk.lastpass.com/features/bookmarklets/) you can use if you can’t install the browser plugin for some reason. I pay for premium ($12/year) mainly for the mobile access and multifactor authentication. I’ve always found it easy to use.
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### Author:  [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/9 "2014-01-08T05:58:45Z")
Sounds like LastPass will let you (painstakingly) retrieve your passwords online from a different computer and DashLane requires the paid premium version to do that. Is that about right?
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### Author:  [@AaronX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AaronX)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/10 "2014-01-08T06:53:25Z")
I mainly use my phone, so I wanted one with phone and desktop versions. It had to be able to export password databases, so I can do my own backup. I use KeePass for these reasons. It doesn’t automatically fill in passwords for me, but it does have a portable desktop program. It also supports multiple databases, so I’m not putting all my eggs in one basket. I can even use it as a journal. Does LastPass support multiple password databases?
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### Author:  [@Just\_Ed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Ed)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 9:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/11 "2014-01-08T09:49:26Z")
> [@levdrakon](#):
>
> Sounds like LastPass will let you (painstakingly) retrieve your passwords online from a different computer and DashLane requires the paid premium version to do that. Is that about right?
I’ve never used DashLane so can’t comment on that, but regarding LastPass, I wouldn’t call the process _painstaking_. You can login to your LastPass “Vault” and simply copy and paste usernames and passwords (they even have a search box) from a different tab or window, or use the bookmarklet. (The first time you click the bookmarklet, you have to login, but thereafter clicking it will autofill username and password for the page you’re on.)
> [@AaronX](#):
>
> Does LastPass support multiple password databases?
I’m not sure what you mean by multiple databases. With LastPass, you can sort your logins into folders much like you would for bookmarks, but I don’t know if that suits your purposes.
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### Author:  [@all\_timestamps\_displayed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/all_timestamps_displayed)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 10:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/12 "2014-01-08T10:29:15Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#):
>
> I use lastpass, and they have plugins for both IE and Chrome, and can import your saved passwords/usernames from both automatically to your vault. So no problems there. Changing them all to secure, independent passwords does take some time, but LastPass plugin (which is free) can do it for you and then remember the new password automatically in both Chrome or IE.
>
> Trying to log into your websites on a computer that does not have a lastpass plugin requires you to navigate to [www.lastpass.com](http://www.lastpass.com) website first, log in, and then copy and paste your passwords from each website. I did this a lot on a trip to Oregon when I was on my dad’s computer. It does add to the time it takes to log into the websites and is a bit of a hassle. But it works. I also have a lastpass app on my cellphone (this is not free and requires a yearly subscription) that does all that kind of stuff on your phone/tablet as well.
>
> I highly recommend LastPass.
This (except for the bit about visiting dad in Oregon). Right down to using the paid app on my phone.
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### Author:  [@joazito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joazito)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/13 "2014-01-08T12:14:25Z")
I have a whole list of password managers I’m considering using at my job, but really, LastPass should be all you need. You’ll need the premium version if you want to access it from your mobile devices but it’s free for desktop use.
Other than that, Keepass or one of its variants would probably be the alternative.
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### Author:  [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/14 "2014-01-08T12:34:40Z")
I use LastPass as well. I can’t imagine life without it.
Question for those using it on Mobile: I had the mobile version for a while, but gave it up because at the time (several years ago), it didn’t really integrate with the iPhone/iPad browser; instead, it had its own browser you had to use to open pages with. I found that to be a hassle.
Is it better now? I’d gladly pay the $12/year for mobile access if it worked on mobile more like it worked on the PC, that is, with browser plug-ins or something similar so that when I hit a page with a password, I didn’t have to switch to the LastPass browser (or whatever it was, my memory is fuzzy, I just know I didn’t like it.)
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### Author:  [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/15 "2014-01-08T12:45:33Z")
The LastPass app has integrated the browser function into its own app, so you can launch a site within the app and even have tabbed browsing. If I want to use it for another mobile browser I just copy the password to the clipboard and then into the other browser; I could be very wrong but don’t think they let you integrate with the other browsers on mobile.
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### Author:  [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/16 "2014-01-08T22:27:21Z")
I was reading the LastPass page on the Google Chrome app store, and there were lots of complaints about the latest version sucking on Chrome. Has that cleared up?
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### Author:  [@Deeg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Deeg)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/17 "2014-01-08T23:08:45Z")
If you are computer savvy then I suggest KeePass. It’s open source and you are in complete control of your PW database so you don’t need to worry that a server accidentally opens a hole to allow your DB to be stolen or read. It is, however, non trivial to set up with cloud storage like Dropbox and you have to install browser add-ons yourself.
For the less computer savvy the online DBs like LastPass are the way to go. They go through the effort to make your install as painless as possible. The downside is that you’re not in complete control but that’s not much downside for most users.
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### Author:  [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/18 "2014-01-08T23:14:45Z")
> [@levdrakon](#):
>
> I was reading the LastPass page on the Google Chrome app store, and there were lots of complaints about the latest version sucking on Chrome. Has that cleared up?
It sucks on Firefox, too. I was a very happy LastPass user for several years, but if they don’t give us the option of reverting to the old interface pretty soon, I’ll be looking for something else.
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### Author:  [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2014, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/19 "2014-01-08T23:50:28Z")
> [@TonySinclair](#):
>
> It sucks on Firefox, too. I was a very happy LastPass user for several years, but if they don’t give us the option of reverting to the old interface pretty soon, I’ll be looking for something else.
You might try checking this url: [https://lastpass.com/change\_ver.php](https://lastpass.com/change_ver.php)
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### Author:  [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)
#### Post date: [January 9, 2014, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244/20 "2014-01-09T00:04:24Z")
I couldn’t be happier honestly with the way it works in Chrome, but I’m a new user so I can’t really say for sure if it was better in the past. It instantly fills in my user name/passwords (and even accurately does form fills including credit cards!!!) so I can’t imagine it being any easier.
Another thing I use is the Google Authenticator app so that even if someone got my LastPass master password, they wouldn’t be able to log in unless they physically had my phone and/or tablet, the only two devices on the planet that can generate my authenticator code that changes every 20 seconds or so.
As far as the mobile app goes, Dolphin web browser for Android does have a LastPass plug in, but I have not used it. It is highly rated though and presumably works just like the IE/Chrome desktop plugins. I am not sure if Dolphin is available on iOS.
[Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-password-manager-please/678244.md?page=2)