The number one rule when we sign up for online sites is to use a password that is different from the others and difficult to guess, so as to avoid hacker attacks. Unfortunately, such complex passwords can be easily forgotten, forcing us to use simpler passwords.
Even if we have an iron memory, it is better to get help from password managers and some online services that can memorize passwords for us, encrypting them and protecting them with the best technologies.
We see in this guide how to save website access passwords in a safe and secure way; we will show you both the password managers integrated within the web browsers (and synchronizable with an online account), and the online services that can manage passwords through extensions for browsers and apps for smartphones and tablets.
Finally we will also show you a completely offline password manager, so you can keep your passwords in a safe place.
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1) Google Chrome
On Google Chrome you can save passwords with the integrated manager, who will take care of synchronizing them also on the added Google account.
In order to make the most of it, we first log in with the Google account, by clicking on the Profile icon at the top right or by going to the menu with the three dots at the top and then clicking on Settings .
From both menus we will access the screen for data synchronization: all we have to do is click on Activate synchronization -> Activate and enter the login credentials for the Google account to be used.
Once logged in, make sure that the item Synchronize everything is active, so as not to lose even a password.
Now that synchronization is active, we will have to make sure that saving passwords is active on your browser.
To do this check, click on the three dots at the top right, then go to the Settings menu -> Password and activate the Ask to save passwords item .
From now on the credentials that we will enter to access a site will be "captured" by the browser and save in this section.
The next time you access the site, a small pop-up will appear at the top right, with which to enter the saved credentials.
If we want to get automatic access to sites, so as not to have to confirm the insertion of credentials every time, it is sufficient to activate also the entry Automatic access, seen in the previous screen.
Chrome uses encryption to protect passwords and also integrates a secure password generator that automatically stores in your account (which you don't need to remember from memory).
Chrome then allows you to access and see the passwords stored in Chrome from every PC and smartphone, even without using Chrome.
2) Mozilla Firefox
Even Mozilla Firefox, another web browser widely used on PC, allows you to save passwords in your management system and synchronize them through a free Web account.
First of all we create an account for the synchronization of the access data in Firefox; to do this, open the browser, click on the three horizontal lines at the top right, go to the Options menu -> Firefox account and click Login .
A new window will open, where you can enter the login credentials for the Firefox account to be used for synchronization; if we don't have one, we can create it right now by clicking on Create an account .
After activating the Firefox account, go to the Options -> Privacy and Security menu and scroll down the page until you find the item Ask whether to save the login credentials for the websites .
We activate the item to save passwords for accessing websites; to increase browser security we can also activate the item Use a main password, so as to protect the passwords with a Master password, the only one to keep in mind.
From now on, the browser will save the access credentials in its internal archive and, in case of future access to the same site, it will allow you to automatically insert them in the required fields.
READ ALSO: How to save passwords in Chrome, Firefox, Edge and Safari
3) LastPass (online)
If, on the other hand, we are looking for an online password management system, the best free online program is without a doubt LastPass .
LastPass is an extension available for all major browsers that can synchronize the passwords saved online and make them available on any PC or browser in which it is installed.
Specific extensions for the various browsers can be found below:
- Mozilla Firefox
- Google Chrome
- Safari
- Microsoft Edge
If instead we want to use LastPass from mobile, below we can find the links for Android and iOS devices.
- LastPass for Android
- LastPass for iPhone and iPad
The only two requirements for using LastPass is to use Master password strong and use one of the browsers mentioned above.
First of all let's get a free account, by registering from here -> LastPass Account.
After entering an email address and password, we can use them within the various extensions or in the apps indicated above.
When we insert credentials into the browser, LastPass will intervene with a pop-up window in the upper right corner, asking to save the credentials within its online archive.
In a few clicks we will be able to save any credentials and, when logging in from another PC, from another browser or from another device, just wait for the warning window to appear, with which to automatically fill in the access fields.
LastPass is undoubtedly the simplest and most recommended solution therefore to store all passwords together, in a secure and centralized way.
There are also others of online password managers like 1Password, very celebrated and of high quality like LastPass.
4) KeePass (offline)
If we don't want to save passwords online, we can always rely on an offline archive manager like KeePass, the best program of its kind.
This application stores all access data and passwords saved on an encrypted file, accessible only by this program and only after entering the chosen Master password.
If you use multiple computers you can use a program such as Dropbox or Google Drive to synchronize the passwords on the computers in order to store them online.
All Keepass operation is based on the Master Password, the only one to remember, which must be very strong and difficult to discover ; therefore alphanumeric, with upper and lower case letters and with some symbols.
Other programs to save passwords like 1Password are also of the same level of protection.
To learn more about the sites and other available password managers, we can read the following guide.
READ ALSO -> How to create and manage passwords for web accounts
