How do you keep track of all your user names and passwords?

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Forum -> Household Management

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amother

Jade

Mon, May 02 2016, 3:25 pm

At different times I use my home computer, my work computer, my tablet, and my phone. How do you keep track of all the log in information from one device to the next especially since some of these devices are shared, so I can't just stay logged in.

Suggestions?

mha3484

Mon, May 02 2016, 3:32 pm

I have a note on my phone. It is password protected in case it gets stolen.

rgr

Mon, May 02 2016, 3:42 pm

Try keepass, you can download the app.
it's encrypted and it keeps track of your passwords.

little_mage

Mon, May 02 2016, 4:10 pm

I use lastpass.com. It's free on one platform, but can be used across multiple platforms for a small fee.

cnc

Mon, May 02 2016, 5:59 pm

I have them written down on a sheet of paper.

amother

Gold

Mon, May 02 2016, 7:35 pm

For low level non sensitive passwords I use the same password. DH uses the same one. We picked one that has one capital letter, a number and is 8 or more digits long so it meets most standards.

For our sensitive accounts (email, banking, etc) we have them written down on paper at home. There is also a theme to them so it's easier to remember even though they are different. The theme could be a band, a movie, an author you like or whatever.

Ruchel

Mon, May 02 2016, 7:48 pm

For the most important ones my husband recommend written down AND coded

rgr

Mon, May 02 2016, 10:06 pm

amother wrote:

Actually, passwords that contain real words are the least secure. The best way is to make a mnemonic that will mean something only to you and your spouse. Substitute one of the letters for a number or a symbol, and keep one letter capital.

For example,
The Cohen Family Loves To Eat Cake becomes Tcfl2ec
Its completely random letters, so no computer will be able to crack it and it means nothing to anyone besides yourselves, so you can easily remember it.

Hashem_Yaazor

Mon, May 02 2016, 10:24 pm

Definitely lastpass, especially since all sites have different rules about length, what characters it must contain and must not contain, etc

amother

Jade

Tue, May 03 2016, 9:15 am

Thanks. I was a bit worried about the security of some random program having access to all my information, but hey, its all there anyways...

OOTBubby

Tue, May 03 2016, 9:24 am

Another good program/app is Dashlane. I've been using since it was beta and it is great.

amother

Bisque

Tue, May 03 2016, 9:32 am

Great question. I have been wondering about this for a long time, but never thought to ask...please keep on posting your suggestions.

Simple1

Tue, May 03 2016, 10:45 am

I mostly use the same password for everything. I don't know if this is considered safe, but I guess I'm not so afraid of being hacked, although maybe I should be?

Occasionally, I'll have to change the password a bit to fit the sites requirements for a password.

Hashem_Yaazor

Tue, May 03 2016, 10:55 am

Very unsafe. If one relatively benign site is hacked, the hackers can then access your financial accounts or shopping accounts and put charges on those, your medical records, etc. It's too easy to be a victim of identity theft that way!

amother

Chocolate

Tue, May 03 2016, 12:39 pm

I also use LastPass. I have a subscription so I can use it on my mobile, too. Worth every penny.

I also have a formula that I use to generate passwords so I almost always know what it is. This is NOT it. but it's something like this:

Take the second and third letters of the domain name. Capitalize the second. Add 06 because I was born in June. Take the first and last letters of the domain name. Add the symbol @. Add my initials, which are (not really) SDF, and capitalize only the first letter. If that's too long I just type it until I run out of letters.

So my password for imamother would be: mA06er@Sdf.

If I have to change passwords then I can't use that method and just store them in LastPass instead.

(anon because I've talked to friends about my method)

gp2.0

Tue, May 03 2016, 1:02 pm

I dunno, I feel like the art of crafting a great password is overrated. When sites are hacked they'll get your information and it won't matter how complicated the password is. I don't think anyone actually runs computer programs to figure out passwords, it would take a million years. Much more effective to break a websites encryption.

It's good to have unique passwords especially for financial sites, so tailoring them to each site you use is a good idea. I like amother chocolates idea and I do something similar, but my way is much simpler because I wouldn't remember it otherwise.

Also if I'm making a new password or username that for some reason deviates from my usual ones, I'll email myself a hint (not the actual password.)

amother

Papaya

Tue, May 03 2016, 1:33 pm

Hashem_Yaazor wrote:

Or a benign site does not encrypt the password at all.

Someone I know used her password she uses at the bank on a website when signing up for updates.
They e-mailed her password back to her in clear text as confirmation.
And ignored requests to delete her account.

HonesttoGod

Wed, May 04 2016, 11:21 am

There are apps for this.

greenfire

Wed, May 04 2016, 12:21 pm

rgr wrote:

...
The Cohen Family Loves To Eat Cake becomes Tcfl2ec
Its completely random letters, so no computer will be able to crack it and it means nothing to anyone besides yourselves, so you can easily remember it.

kool

LisaS

Wed, May 04 2016, 2:01 pm

Keepass evangelist here Wave

If anyone on this board works with me they'll probably recognize me from this post.

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