Computer security began even before the construction of the first modern computer system. Passwords and access codes have been used by militaries and governments all over the world for controlling who can get into what, where, and in some instance, even when. Time-lock safes existed before the ENIAC, and remote access passwords existed before the internet. However, never in history has one person been expected to remember as many passwords to so many different locations as people are today. It’s a burden we all have to bear. Or do we?
In the 1970s, 80s, and 90s, telephone numbers where the largest list of information any individual was expected to remember. They were the passwords to contacting your friends, family and businesses. Back then, we had to bear the burden of memorizing all those phone numbers. In the 2000s, something better came along. Contact lists and smartphones eliminated the need to memorize phone numbers and began remembering who your contacts were for you.
Password managers now perform the same function that contact lists perform for phone numbers. You no longer have to remember long strings of miscellaneous numbers, letter, characters and symbols. You can establish them once and let your password manager store and retrieve them as you access the site to which they belong.
Just like your contact list, your password manager is stored on a device that you have control over, be it your home computer, work computer, cell phone or a specialized access card: the hardware is under your control. Your hardware can even share information between multiple password managers. Need to access your personal e-mail at work? No problem. Just transfer that information from your home password manager to your work password manager and navigate to your personal e-mail account.
Security managers will tell you never to use the same password for more than one site, and with a password manager, you can finally heed that advice without having to carry a notebook full of passwords, much like the way you used to keep a rolodex on your desk. Choose one master password for your password manager and unique passwords for all the sites you visit. Your master password secures the password manager, and the password manager stores the passwords for each of the sites that you need to use.
With password managers available today, you can let go of the fear of forgetting the passwords to the hundreds of sites we all visit. These services provide an unprecedented level of security to the codes of value to you.
If you’re considering a password manager, check out http://www.reviews.com/password-manager/. They look at 94 different password-saving apps, comparing them and making recommendations for the best password manager for you.