In Case Any Of You Are Kickstarter Fiends.

[Doni]

https://www.kickstarter.com/project...-password-manager-secure-usb-and-pho?ref=live

I came across this project while browsing the technology section of Kickstarter today, as I often do. It's a password manager with a usb flash drive and an online database to keep your passwords. This allows you to easily create a different password for every site you register on, which is the best way to do it, but it keeps them for you so you don't have to remember dozens (or hundreds) of passwords. Only problem is, free software already exists that does this. I'm posting here in case this type of thing seems useful to this Elio crowd.

KeePass (keepass.info) has been out there for a while and serves the same purpose for absolutely free. It's an encrypted database to keep all of your passwords for you, and even assists in generating passwords based on your criteria. I've been using it for about 6 months and it feels good to have a different, 22 character password for every site. I made a video about how to use it months back and I'll link it here in case you guys/gals want to use it. It's kinda long but if you care about being more secure online, this one of the easiest ways to do it. SAVE YOUR MONEY.

 

[2.ooohhh]

I have used and prefer Lastpass myself, but I also recommend all the users I manage move to some secure password management product. Keepass is great but it requires thoughtful setup to remain secure(fine for some of us but over many of my healthcare users heads). The database is essentially only as secure as where you choose to store it. Lastpass only stores the encrypted database online so you don't have to trust them anymore than google. I trust Lastpass more than most b/c they are transparent about their encryption methods and procedures, any company that uses security through obscurity should be dumped in a hurry.

 

[Doni]

The difference is you have to trust lastpass with your passwords. You don't have to do that with KeePass. And I'm not sure how much more transparent you can be when you're open source.

 

[2.ooohhh]

That's just it, you don't trust lastpass with your plaintext passwords, you trust them with a salted and hashed(via client side encryption) database of your passwords. Security wise it is no different than the way you store your keepass database on google drive. When I request access to my passwords on a new machine I have to login to lastpass securely(w/ 2 factor auth) and they send me a copy of my encrypted database which I then decrypt(client side) with my master password.

 

[Doni]

AAhhh.. If the encryption happens client side then I see your point. Admittedly, I did start out using LastPass when I was looking for a password manager. The only reason I dropped it was because it required a subscription instead of just a one-off payment.

Edit: I ran into the payments when looking at getting passwords on my Android device. Anyone reading this should know that both options are free when you're just using them on your computer.

 

[2.ooohhh]

Lastpass only requires the upgrade fee if you want to use it on phones/tablets. I set it up for all our users on our desktops. That way if they want to use it on their mobile devices(we have a BYOD policy at our center) they are responsible for the $12 a year. Some may only use it only at work others love it once they start to use it and pay the $12 to put it on everything. As an admin. I don't care which so long as they are using more secure passwords across the board for our purposes. Healthcare (especially VAMC) require a higher level of general user security than many industries. (unfortunately)

 

[Doni]

Yeah I made sure to edit my comment to clarify that I only ran into $ when getting it on my mobile.

 

[raybonz]

https://www.kickstarter.com/project...-password-manager-secure-usb-and-pho?ref=live

I came across this project while browsing the technology section of Kickstarter today, as I often do. It's a password manager with a usb flash drive and an online database to keep your passwords. This allows you to easily create a different password for every site you register on, which is the best way to do it, but it keeps them for you so you don't have to remember dozens (or hundreds) of passwords. Only problem is, free software already exists that does this. I'm posting here in case this type of thing seems useful to this Elio crowd.

KeePass (keepass.info) has been out there for a while and serves the same purpose for absolutely free. It's an encrypted database to keep all of your passwords for you, and even assists in generating passwords based on your criteria. I've been using it for about 6 months and it feels good to have a different, 22 character password for every site. I made a video about how to use it months back and I'll link it here in case you guys/gals want to use it. It's kinda long but if you care about being more secure online, this one of the easiest ways to do it. SAVE YOUR MONEY.

Very nice work Doni! Will need to set this up here too..

Ray

 

[Doni]

Thanks ray! Take a look at all of your options. I can't argue with 2.ooohhh that LastPass is easier to set up and use. Even if you need it on your phone, $12 per year isn't much.

 

[raybonz]

Thanks ray! Take a look at all of your options. I can't argue with 2.ooohhh that LastPass is easier to set up and use. Even if you need it on your phone, $12 per year isn't much.

True but I am a cheapskate lol.. I like open source freeware anyways.. Lots of good free stuff out there!

Ray