Articles in Category: Passwords
What Should I Do If I Lose Access to My Password Vault?
Losing access to your password vault is something you can recover from.
No, Don’t Write Down Passwords
The world’s largest magazine dispensed some bad tech advice. Here’s why I so strongly disagree.
Is It Really That Easy to Get Someone’s Password?
We’ll look at some ways that someone else could access your account — or at least look like they have.
How Can Four Random Words Possibly Be More Secure Than 16 Random Characters?
Passphrases are just as secure as passwords — perhaps even more so — and are easier to remember if needed.
Why ANY Two-Factor Is Better than No Two-Factor
Headlines are proclaiming that two-factor authentication has been hacked. That in no way means you shouldn’t use it. Your account is still much safer with two-factor enabled.
What Is a Passkey?
Passkeys are a new form of authentication that promise to be both easier and more secure.
Can I Still Use LastPass Safely?
Selecting another password manager is now the common recommendation. I’ll review what you can do if you elect to keep using LastPass.
Will AI Crack Your Passwords?
We’re seeing AI associated with many things. Cracking your passwords is now on the list.
What’s the Best Password Manager in 2023?
The best password manager is the password manager you’ll use (within reason, of course).
Are Facial Recognition and Fingerprint ID Safe?
Facial recognition and fingerprint ID are quick, convenient approaches to signing into or unlocking your devices. But are they safe enough?
Why Is It Important to Have Different Passwords on Different Accounts?
Using a different password for every login is crucial — and it doesn’t have to be difficult.
Your 6 Strongest Practical Password Techniques, Ranked
Six practical approaches to generating passwords, ranked from best to worst.
How Long Should a Password Be?
For years, the standard practice has been to assume that eight-character passwords made up of sufficiently random characters was enough. Not any more. Not even close.
What to Do About the LastPass Breach
The most recent LastPass security incident has many people concerned.
Should I Use My Password Vault for Two-Factor Authentication As Well?
A new feature in some password vaults has us thinking about security implications. Bottom line: use two-factor authentication.
A Lost-Second-Factor Tale of Woe and How to Avoid Your Own
A tech journalist lost his phone and encountered issues recovering a two-factor-protected account. We can all learn from his experience.
Please Set Up and Maintain Account Recovery Information
Account recovery information is an important yet often overlooked part of account security. Managed poorly, it can lead to permanent account loss.
What You Need To Do About the LastPass Hack
A portion of LastPass was breached. Here’s why it’s not a disaster, and why I’m not leaving LastPass.
What If Password Autofill Won’t Work?
Password vaults are sometimes unable to auto-fill fields. There are several ways to work around this.
How Can I Delete an Old Account If I Can’t Log In?
If you’ve lost your password, there may be recovery steps. If you’ve also lost your email address, recovery becomes significantly more difficult.
I Lost My Phone With My Second Factor for Authentication. How Do I Recover?
My phoned died, and with it, all the two-factor authentication methods I’d used it for. Here’s how I recovered.
LastPass Password Manager and Vault
One of the challenges with current online safety advice is keeping track of multiple different secure passwords. LastPass not only does that, but does it securely across multiple devices.
I’m Told to Change My Password. Why?
If you’ve been told to change your password, do so, but do so in the right way. I’ll explain what that means and why it’s important.
Would You Please Recover My Password?
Every day, I’m asked to reset lost passwords, recover hacked accounts, or retrieve lost information in them. Here’s my answer.
Is a Password-protected Windows Login Secure?
Your Windows log-in password gets you surprisingly little real security. I’ll look at why that is, why you might still want one, and what I do instead.
Will Using a Password Vault Thwart a Keylogger?
A password tool may bypass a few keyloggers, but not all. Think about your overall computer and account safety first.
Is Passwordless Authentication Safe?
Passwordless authentication removes the need for a password and replaces it with something else. But can that be secure?
Do Random Words Make Better Passwords?
As few as three random words make better passwords than strings of random characters — but not, perhaps, for the reasons you think.
Responses to Your Three Common Password Manager Objections
Password vaults are a common recommendation by security professionals to improve your online security. Why do so many resist?
How Do Websites Keep Passwords Secure?
A high-level overview of how websites and services should store passwords security, so next time there’s a breach you’ll know what to look for.
No Email from LastPass? Dealing with Sign-In Problems
While travelling, I signed in to my LastPass account only to be told I needed to confirm an email message that never arrived — or so I thought.
What if I Forget My Passwords If I Use Two-Factor Authentication?
Two-factor authentication is different than passwords, but they both share important recovery steps if there’s a problem.
How Do I Access Gmail Without Phone Verification?
There are a number of ways to confirm your identity if you don’t have your phone. The catch is that most have to be set up before you need them.
Should Your Username be More Like a Password?
Occasionally people suggest that usernames should be treated like passwords. While there’s some merit to the idea, it’s ultimately impractical.
The Easy-to-Avoid Two-Factor Loss Risk
Two-factor authentication is an important tool to keep accounts secure, but prepare for losing the second factor so you don’t lose your account.
Isn’t Storing Your Passwords In One Place a Security Risk?
Yes, password managers put all your information in one place. It better be a very good place.
Are Longer Passwords Better, Even If They’re Simpler?
A longer password of repeating characters is more secure than a short complicated password — but there’s more to security than cracking.
What’s the Best Two-Factor Authentication Option?
The best two-factor authentication approach varies based on your needs, and what’s offered by the service you’re trying to use it with.
What Should I Do About the Changes to LastPass Free?
LastPass is changing the terms of their free service. Find out if you’re affected, and what to do if you are.
Can I Have Different Passwords for YouTube and Gmail?
A Google account includes Gmail, YouTube, and much more. If you want to keep those services separate, you’ll need separate Google accounts.
Why Password Managers Are [Still] Safer than the Alternatives
If you’re not using a password manager, you’re likely compromising your security more than necessary. Here’s why using one is safer.
Is Passwordless Sign-in Safe?
Signing in without a password seems almost nonsensical, yet it can be more secure than traditional sign-ins. More convenient? That depends.
How Two-Factor Authentication Works
Two-factor authentication is a great way to keep your accounts secure from hackers — even those who manage to get your password.
Why Is It So Important to Use Different Passwords for Everything?
Using different passwords on different sites is not only good practice, it’s necessary to keep your accounts safe. I’ll review why, and how best to handle a plethora of passwords.
How Do I Hack Someone’s Account? How Do I Hack My Own?
These are oversimplifications of many variations on the same basic question. People want to hack into other people’s accounts, or even their own, for a variety of reasons. Some sound perfectly legitimate. Others, not so much. And others are just blatant attempts at theft, harassment, or revenge. What’s really scary is that I get these requests … Read more
Is a Periodic Password Change a Good Thing?
Changing passwords periodically is conventional wisdom. I disagree, and then discuss whether periodic password change can even happen reliably.
What If I Lose My Second Factor?
When you lose your second factor, there are two things to be concerned about: getting into your own account — for which you should be prepared — and someone else having access to your second factor — which isn’t as scary as it sounds.
Why Can’t Online Services Tell Me My Password?
It’s for your own protection, and the result of fascinating mathematical wizardry. And if they can tell you your password? They’re doing security wrong.
How Do I Choose a Good Password?
With occasional security breaches at service providers and rampant email account theft, password security has never been more important. Make sure you choose and use secure passwords.
