With the constant news of security breaches and identity theft, having a unique password for each location can go a long way to ensuring that if one site gets hacked, your stolen password can't be used on other sites. (Password generation really comes in clutch when you can't come up with yet another unique password on the fly for the latest must-have app.) In addition to keeping your identity, credentials and sensitive data safe, the best password managers also have a password generator to create strong, unique passwords and ensure you aren't using the same password in multiple places. What is a password manager, and why do you need one?Ī password manager is essentially an encrypted digital vault that stores secure password login information you use to access apps and accounts on your mobile device, websites and other services. We will be conducting a thorough re-review of LastPass in the near future. If you're a LastPass subscriber, take a look at CNET's advice on what to do in the wake of the breach, or see the LastPass section below for more information. In light of the severity of this latest breach and given LastPass's lengthy history of security issues, we have decided to remove LastPass from our list of recommended password managers at this time.

This breach significantly undermines LastPass's effectiveness as a privacy tool and consumer trust in the product. 12, 2023: In December 2022, LastPass revealed that the breach it originally disclosed in August had eventually led to an unauthorized party gaining access to unencrypted user data and customer vaults containing even more data.

They're also handy when it comes to autofilling forms and syncing your data across Windows PCs and Macs, iPhones, iPads, Android phones and more.Įditors' note, Jan. It can help you seamlessly oversee and handle all of your login credentials for any online account and maintain airtight password security. Unless you want to constantly safeguard a hard-copy list of all your passwords, you might want to consider a password manager. Keeping track of all of your passwords is where a password manager comes in. Though passwords like those are easier to remember, they're also easier to hack, especially if you're using the same password for different accounts. And with password crackers more advanced than ever, you'll want to use unique passwords for every account that you have - not just your pet's name or favorite sports team. It can be difficult keeping track of all the different passwords you have.

Password manager service options we haven't reviewed.

Other password managers worth considering.

What is a password manager, and why do you need one?.

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