Today, we have passwords for everything. Social media accounts, bank accounts, email, shops, fitness apps, games, the list goes on and on. How are we expected to remember all of them without using the same password more than once?
Easy. With Lastpass.
In Lastpass' own words they "Securely remember your passwords, so you don't have to".
This basically means you store your passwords in one location, ready for easy retrieval for when you need them. With plugins available for Firefox and Chrome, you also have the option of accessing your passwords straight from your browser.
Lastpass synchonises across the devices you have Lastpass configured on, as well as a plethora of additional security features to assist you even further with your passwords.
Oh yes, it's free.
My experience with Lastpass
I've been using Lastpass since 2011 and I store most of my passwords in there for easy retrieval later. It has helped me many times over the years wherein I've gone to a website to register or sign up, only to find that I already had a log in (because I had saved it to Lastpass years before)
They are super-secure. Since this is their business, I trust security would be their primary concern.
And if you're conscientious about your privacy, you could always just put a password reminder in the password field to act as a trigger for you to remember the full password (which I sometimes do too).
Interestingly, why don't you have a read my thoughts on Privacy. I'd be keen to know what you think too.
Generating passwords
There are many schools of thought regarding password complexity and usage. They range from 16-random-characters-confusing-as-shit to full sentences with spaces and everything.
My personal preference is 2 random words and numbers. Then a combination of letters depicting the service I've signed up for.
For example:
- 2 words: Sunny beagle
- 2 numbers: 93
- Separator: –
- Letters for service: Facebook (fa), Google (go), Amazon (am)
The passwords for these services would be:
- Facebook: Sunnybeagle93-fa
- Google: Sunnybeagle93-go
- Amazon: Sunnybeagle93-am
As you can see, the password is the same for all except the 2 letters of the service you're logging in to. Easy peasy!
Additionally, the password is secure(ish) as it is 16 characters long, has uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and special characters. All the basics are covered.
Changing your passwords
It's generally a good idea to change your passwords every now and again. Having the same password for years on end is not the most secure method for remembering your password.
Without giving all my secrets away, I have 3 different password variations that I switch between. In this way, it will only take me 3 attempts to remember my password.
And please, whatever you do, don't (do. not.) use 'password', 'password1', 'password123', or anything even slightly related to that. Not your name, your daughter's name, your date of birth – actually, pretty much dont' use anything of a personal nature. These are the first things bad people will try when cracking your password.
Onward and upward
Now that you know where to store your passwords (and how to set some secure ones), I would highly recommend you review your current password situation and get it sorted – at a minimum, your important ones like banks, email, and popular social media accounts (since they can be used to log in to other services).
Any questions, don't hesitate to ask.
