Created: Jun 13, 2024 // Updated: Jun 13, 2024

A password manager is a software application used to manage, generate and share passwords for all your online accounts across multiple devices.

A password manager acts as a vault that holds multiple long, random passwords for each of your accounts which can all be retrieved with one password that works as a key to the vault. It can also hold all the extremely important, private information you want to keep away from hackers like your credit card number and answers to security questions. With all the security measures, it would take hackers decades, or even forever, to get into the vault.

Many password managers feature a simple and secure way to share a username and password with someone else, even, sometimes, without that person seeing that information at all. For example, say you want to share site login details with your friend, Marcus. Sometimes, if Marcus has the same password manager as you, you can grant them access to log into the site automatically without having to share the actual password. And the best part is, you can revoke that privilege as well if necessary.

How to Share with Password Managers:

  • LastPass and DashlaneAllow you to share to nonusers as much as you want, though, they will need to sign up for a free account to retrieve the login info. Free password managers do have limitations unless you get a premium account, but it will fully secure the information for those few individual passwords before you reach the limit.

  • 1PasswordHas a family subscription option that allows you to have five members on a plan. This means you can share as many, or as few, passwords with each member individually. If you don’t want your kids to have access to the finances, no problem! You can limit their access while giving that access to your spouse. Each member will need to download 1Password and create their own master password, but it makes sharing account info so much simpler.

  • Intuitive PasswordAllows you to share your information both privately and publicly using permissions. Privately sharing means anyone you give permission to can easily access and even edit your passwords on your behalf, if you allow it. Publicly, you give a non-user a Data ID - a coded series of numbers and letters to use when they login to your information - and a Permission Code - a code that identifies they have permission to look at your secure account - and they can access the data you wish to share with them.

  • KeeperOnly allows sharing between paid users, but the process is simple. You click the “Share” button and type the email of a user or multiple users and decide if you want them to be able to edit or just view the information. Any edits you make to a shared record is automatically synced to each account that you shared it to. You can also remove a user from any shared record at any time.

Other Sharing Options

You can also use a service like 1ty.me or Noteshred to send sensitive messages that will "self-destruct" after they have been delivered. To make sure you are being as secure as possible with a service like this, be sure to send the password alone, without accompanying information about what the password is for.

  • 1Ty.me This service doesn’t require an account. Simply enter the information in the textbox, and click on Generate Link. Copy the link, send it to the person you want to share it with, and, once it is viewed, it is destroyed.

  • Noteshred Does make you sign up but the service is totally free. Once you have an account, it is easy to send a message directly to your correspondents. A really cool feature of this service is that it lets you track your notes activity and see if it has been received, read, and/or shredded.

  • One Time Secret Similar to these, One Time Secret is a free service that allows you to determine a time limit on your note. Once the message has been viewed, it cannot be revisited and, if it is not seen in the time limit you set, it will disappear forever. You can sign up for more options and, if you are concerned about using your real info, you can make a temporary email instead.

If you want the absolute, most secure option for storing and sharing passwords, we would suggest a password manager. That said, you would need to do your own research and figure out which one, if any, is best for you. Password managers tend to work best depending on what browser you use and a lot of them are limited in how you can access your account on different devices. Plus, if you ever forget your key password, you have to go to each account and re-login with a new password. Weigh your pros and cons and do what is right for you to insure your most important information stays out of the wrong hands.


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