It is truly upsetting to see how few people use password managers. I have witnessed people who always use the same password (and even tell me what it is), people who try to login to accounts but constantly can’t remember which credentials they used, people who store all of their passwords on a text file on their desktop, people who use a password manager but store the master password on Discord, entire tech sectors in companies locked to LastPass, and so much more. One person even told me they were upset that websites wouldn’t tell you password requirements after you create your account, and so they screenshot the requirements every time so they could remember which characters to add to their reused password.

Use a password manager. Whatever solution you think you can come up with is most likely not secure. Computers store a lot of temporary files in places you might not even know how to check, so don’t just stick it in a text file. Use a properly made password manager, such as Bitwarden or KeePassXC. They’re not going to steal your passwords. Store your master password in a safe place or use a passphrase that you can remember. Even using your browser’s password storage is better than nothing. Don’t reuse passwords, use long randomly generated ones.

It’s free, it’s convenient, it takes a few minutes to set up, and its a massive boost in security. No needing to remember passwords. No needing to come up with new passwords. No manually typing passwords. I know I’m preaching to the choir, but if even one of you decides to use a password manager after this then it’s an easy win.

Please, don’t wait. If you aren’t using a password manager right now, take a few minutes. You’ll thank yourself later.

  • BlizzardEnglish
    61·
    4 months ago

    What’s wrong with a password manager built in the browser?

    • kevincox@lemmy.ml
      102·
      4 months ago

      Honestly nothing. I recommend this to everyone because it is the easiest way to set up and offers huge advantages.

      1. No more password reuse, per site random passwords.
      2. Auto-fill reduces chance of phishing attacks work because you get suspicious if the password doesn’t auto-fill.
      3. Most browsers will integrate it into their sync service to reduce the risk of you losing your passwords.

      I think these are the two biggest benefits and every browser password manager will accomplish both.

      • _____@lemm.eeEnglish
        4·
        4 months ago

        This is what I do: I use my browser to store all my randomly generated passwords. If I ever need them on my phone I either sync or go to my desktop and view the password and type it over.

    • Monstrosity@lemm.eeEnglish
      7·
      4 months ago

      That’s what I’ve resorted to, but I only use Firefox because it has a master password.

      Chrome has no master password so what stops any fool from stealing your passwords while you’re taking a piss, I don’t know.

      Password managers always cause me headaches, though, and never want to integrate correctly. More trouble than their worth in my estimation.

    • Abnorc@lemm.ee
      1·
      4 months ago

      I like using Bitwarden since it lets me input passwords for various apps on my phone as well as my other devices. Using one built into your browser seems fine as long as the passwords are stored securely.