Managing passwords
In this course, you’ll learn how to be safer and more secure on the internet, by looking after the many passwords you need to use day-to-day. You’ll find out about software called a Password Manager, how to use it safely, and what other things a Password Manager can do besides look after your usernames and passwords.
Before you start, take some time to watch the following video that outlines the importance of using strong passwords. You'll also be introduced to a password manager which can securely store your important passwords.
Transcript
Welcome to 'What is a Password Manager?'. In this video, you'll learn how a Password Manager safely stores all of Steve's online passwords, and lets him access them using a single, secure Master Password. You'll also see how Steve uses a Password Manager to automatically add saved login details to a website, and create strong passwords for online accounts.
Steve has been using the internet for a while, and has lots of online accounts, which means lots of passwords. His passwords have several random uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols. This makes them strong, but also hard to remember. It's time for Steve to get help, and invest in a Password Manager. He types the address of his preferred Password Manager into his browser, checking it carefully to be sure that it is the official, secure website of the Password Manager. He then checks the pricing. There's a free trial period, perfect! Once he's installed the Password Manager on his computer, he creates an account. He uses his email address as his username, and creates a strong password. From now on, Steve will need to remember only this password, and the Password Manager will remember all his other passwords. Steve's master password is like a key that unlocks his Password Manager. Anyone with this key will be able to access all his passwords, so he knows not to share it with anyone. While Steve is sure he's made a very strong password, he decides to set up an extra step of protection, so he will need more than one key to access his Password Manager. This is called two-factor authentication. The first key is his master password. And the extra key is a unique code that is sent to his mobile phone. Steve will need to enter both every time he uses his Password Manager. There's one step left for Steve to set up his account. He just has to enter his mobile phone number. Now he's ready to start adding some important passwords to his Password Manager. He finds the Post-it note that has his Wi-Fi username and password scrawled onto it, and types them into his Password Manager. Steve has several passwords saved to his Chrome browser, so he follows the steps to import these into his Password Manager.
Now his Password Manager contains the log-in details for his email, online banking, grocery store, Facebook, and even Be Connected! Not only will his Password Manager remember these passwords, it will also enter them for him each time he visits these websites. So next time Steve visits his email account, the Password Manager will offer to auto-fill his login details. He just has to enter his master password and enter the unique code sent to his mobile phone and his username and password are be added automatically, making it easy for Steve to log into his email account. Steve's Password Manager can auto-fill other saved personal details too, such as his name, address, and credit card details, so he can complete online forms quickly and accurately. Steve wants to buy a book online. It's the first time he's used this website, so it asks him to create a new account with them.
With a Password Manager, he doesn't need to think of a unique and secure password himself. The Password Manager will generate one for him and remember it as well! Another good reason for Steve to use a Password Manager is that it will let him know if any of his passwords may have been compromised by a security breach or hack. His Password Manager informs him which passwords he should change, and even helps him change them. Some web browsers offer a few of the features of a Password Manager. Chrome, Safari and Edge, for example, can save, and create passwords and auto-fill saved details. The downside is that these features work only when Steve uses the same browser on each device.
The Chrome password manager Steve uses on his computer won't work with other browsers on his other devices. With a Password Manager, Steve can take advantage of all the features, even if he uses different browsers on his devices. Steve enjoys convenience and peace of mind, knowing that his passwords are securely protected by his Password Manager!
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1
The importance of strong and secure passwords
7 min
2
What is a password manager?
7 min
3
Free password managers
6 min
4
Paid password managers
4 min
5
How to set up a password manager
5 min
6
Other things a password manager can do
6 min
7
Retrieving your passwords and troubleshooting
5 min