As with most individuals, you probably have a ton of passwords to go along with your numerous online account.  

Unless you’re using the same password for everything – which you shouldn’t be! -You’ll need a secure place to store them.

 

 

Until recently, I wasn’t fond of online password managers. You know, the ones where your passwords are stored in the cloud. In the past I kept my gazillion passwords on a 13-year old Blackberry. Oh, how I miss the tactile Blackberry keyboard. My old Blackberry does not have cellular service, the only thing it had was the ability to power-up and a password manager on the device. My Blackberry was the perfect place to store my passwords -or so I thought. One day I noticed that the battery was expanding. That meant that its days were numbered.  I had to find another place to store my passwords.

Then I took another look at online password managers.

What I found changed my mind.

• Better security and enhanced encryption (encryption at rest and in transit)
• Ability to share specific passwords with family or others – no more getting texts from my husband or the kids asking me for the Netflix password!!
• Ability to appoint someone access to may passwords if something should happen to me
• In addition to storing passwords, you can also store notes or other account information (PIN, Security question answers, etc)
• Backup options, in the event something should happen to the original records
• Some include a free VPN, great for when you have to use public wifi

With the improvements to security and the new features, it made sense for me to switch to a password manager.

I will keep a local version of my passwords,  just in case I am unable to access them online.

Now begins the painstaking task of transferring my gazillion passwords from my once beloved Blackberry into my password manager account. I just pray I complete the task before the Blackberry battery explodes.

What about you? Have you made the switch to an online password manager? Post in the comments why you do or do not use an online password manager.