Google has integrated a password manager into their Google Chrome web browser. If you use the Google Chrome browser then you can take advantage of this tool to store all the different passwords that you use online. When you revisit a site where you have stored your password, Google Password Manager will automatically fill in the password details. This way, you don’t need to keep track of all the different passwords that you use across the internet. Another bonus is that if you have a google account and log into the browser, your passwords will sync across all the devices on which you use Chrome. This is great if you log into a new PC and cannot remember all of your passwords.
In this article, we’ll discuss how to use Google Password Manager. and if it is secure enough for you to use.
How to use Google Password Manager
Google Password Manager is built into the Chrome browsers for Windows, Android, iPhone, and iPad, so as soon as you’ve installed Chrome on your devices, it’s available for use. If you do not currently use Google chrome, you can download Chrome for free from Google.
You wuill also need a Google account, so if you don’t already have a Google account (which is used for Gmail, YouTube, and Google Play), you’ll need to create one. You’ll be prompted to do so from within the Chrome browser when you first install it, or you can go to the Google account creation page. There, you’ll be asked for your name, email address, and to create a password and really only takes a few minutes to set up. You can either use your existing email address or create a new, free Gmail address. Optionally, you can also add a recovery phone number and email address to be used if you’re unable to log into your account.
Once you have created an account and you have logged into the Chrome Browser, you will see that everytime you create a new account on a website or log into a secure website, Chrome will ask whether you want to save the username and password. Clicking Save will store this information for future use. You can save multiple username and password combinations for each site.
When you return to the website in the future, the password form will automatically fill in. If you’ve saved multiple passwords for the page, you can select the username and password pair that you want to use from a drop-down menu.
How to sync passwords across devices with Google Password Manager
When the sync is turned on in Chrome, your passwords are securely stored in your Google account. All Chrome browsers with sync enabled will automatically use these shared passwords. This is perfect if you use Chrome on multiple devices and want access to your accounts everywhere. In Chrome for Windows, you can enable sync by clicking on Settings, choosing Sync, clicking Google Services, and selecting Turn On.
If you have password sync enabled, you can manage the passwords stored in Google Password Manager at passwords.google.com. Here, you can search through stored passwords, add/edit/remove passwords, and export a copy of all your passwords in an (insecure) text file format.
Password Checkup tool
This is something that really is a cool feature of Google Password Manager. Password Checkup tool is designed to securely analyze your passwords against a database of ones that are known to be compromised and breached. If any of the passwords that you use on websites are compromised in a security breach, malicious hackers could gain access to your account. The Password Checkup tool will let you know if any of your have been compromised so that you can action accordingly. You should update these to be strong and unique for each website mimmediately.
Is Goggle Password Manager Secure
There are a number of browsers with inbuilt password managers and honestly, they’re just okay-ish. The Google password manager om the other hand uses the latest security technology to protect your passwords. It makes it easier to create and use complex and secure passwords with no need to remember or repeat them. It is a robust and secure tool for business or personal use and in my opinion it is a tool worth using with confidence.
There are however a few issues and vulnerabilities you need to be aware of first.
- One feature every respectable password manager app offers is the option to generate extremely complex passwords. While it is possible to generate a password in Google Chrome, it’s not an intuitive feature and the passwords themselves aren’t very strong. If you are creating your own very complex and secure passwords then this will not be an issue. – Please visit Tips for creating a secure and strong password
- Chrome Limits You To Browser-Only Usage. Using Google Chrome as your primary password manager not only locks you into the Google ecosystem, it also limits you to browser-only usage.
- Google Chrome Password Manager isn’t Well-Secured. With most browser-based password managers, including Google Chrome, your password security is directly tied to your device security. Most dedicated password managers will require another layer of authentication to gain access to your stored passwords.
