What do you do to keep track of passwords?
Passwords.
Aside from their helpful purpose (to keep your sensitive information safe), they can be kind of a hassle to remember, to find, to concoct.
Here’s what I do to remember to remember passwords
What is currently working well for me:
Low tech. I wrote them down – every last one – on a piece of paper. Remembering them is hard. My magic password sheet makes it easy.
Bright and shiny. The magic password sheet lives in a see-through red plastic sleeve that is practically impossible to miss.
Handy. I keep it very close to me in the most convenient place. No, not my Brownie Smile. My magic password sheet. I can reach out my right arm and – voila! – there it is! Lickey-split!
Security. My vivid imagination gets me to worry sometimes that a nefarious character will get their grubby paws on my magic password sheet. So all of my passwords are written in code. The passwords on the paper are not the actual codes themselves, but I know what they mean.
Laugh if you will, but I sleep better at night. 
What I’m currently working on:
Remembering to write them down. Whenever I set up a new account somewhere, I write down the login and password on my magic password sheet. It’s not hard to do, it’s just sometimes a trick to catch myself in the act and recognize, “Hey! I’m creating a new login name and password! Better write it down!”
What do YOU do to keep track of passwords?
What works really well for you? What are you working on?
Share your insights and ideas! Your comments on your own process are welcome. I also request kindly that you not give advice to me or others unless it’s specifically requested. This makes exploring safe and learning possible for every reader.
868 days ago,
Erin said:
I also write my passwords down on a piece of paper. The problem is remembering where that paper is..
868 days ago,
Margaret Oscilia said:
I’ve got a beautiful little black book by my computer where I write down user names and passwords. For many of the websites, they really aren’t critical so if this secret book fell into enemy hands I could easily change the passwords. Critical ones, like my bank accounts I keep in “code” in the book.
I also have a section for things I use occasionally on the internet that I want to remember – like how do I shrink those photos so they can be emailed? All in one spot personalized reference manual for me!
868 days ago,
jennifer said:
Erin – Exactly. : ) At least you’re not trying to keep them in your head.
Margaret – Keeping it in the same place helps, doesn’t it? I also notice that you said the book is “beautiful” and I think that matters! Nice to see you here!
I can’t always remember to put mine back – which is why I chose such an obnoxious color. : )
868 days ago,
Amanda said:
Interesting, as writing them down makes them accessible to anyone who might be in your house/office and want them. Yeah writing them in code helps and requires way more brain poser than I want to expend.
I have a protected spreadsheet as I manage my own passwords and passwords for 5-6 other orgs and companies. I only have to remember 3 passwords… the one to get past the BIOS security when booting my computer, my Windows login, and my password for that file. A couple others I remember from just frequency of use.
As for the effort of opening the file, I’m usually in it every couple days, so it’s in my recently used items, but in case I haven’t, it’s right in a main directory in Documents, so it’s easy access.
The other bennie I find in having them on my computer is the really hard ones I can just copy & paste into the field they need to go in.
868 days ago,
Regina Mountjoy said:
I use Outlook for just about everything. I have one note for all my login passwords. i.e. http://www.evite.com, u: blahblah, p: blahblah. Everytime I set up an account I add it to this note. I also have a sheet inside my Permanent Records Binder that lists all our bank/credit card accounts info- website, login, acct #s, credit card #s. This way I don’t have to go searching the house for my purse when I need to reference an account number or make an online purchase.
868 days ago,
jennifer said:
@Amanda – It sounds like a great system for you! That’s the whole trick to organizing – finding a way that works, doesn’t make you think too hard, and keeps things flowing.
@Regina – Ah… I get it. On Outlook you have one note with all your info there. I’d forgotten that Outlook has a “note” feature. Very clever! Do you find that having it on the computer slows you down at all (if it’s off)?
Again, having it all in one place proves to be useful – whether it’s written or digital.
868 days ago,
Qrystal said:
I have a lot of techniques for passwords, including (for low-security places like web forums and stuff) starting each password with the same alphanumeric code and ending the password with something identifying the site I’m on — so each password is different, but similar enough that I can guess it most of the time.
The best thing though has been a handy little free program called KeePass, and I just have to remember the one password to get me into that. With KeePass, I just drag and drop my userid and password into the right place, and I don’t even have to look at what the password actually is! I’m still not quite used to remembering to put them in there to begin with, but I usually remember as soon as I have to get the password reset.
Technically, I could use KeePass to store totally random character strings if I really wanted, but I tend to still use memorable things that I can enter with keystrokes if I have to. It is nice to know, though, that if my memory fails me, I still have a way to get most of my passwords without resetting them!
.-= Qrystal´s last blog ..My Teaching Philosophy =-.
868 days ago,
Loni Edwards said:
Yep I use KeePass also. Its great!
868 days ago,
Ann Douglas said:
I have a software program that stores my passwords for me. It’s called Password Wallet (shareware).The only thing I need to remember is the password that I need to access the program. I love it.
868 days ago,
Darcy said:
I also use coded reminders, an Outlook note (with a special secret title which I would love to tell you but then I’d have to kill you), and I keep a certain family of passwords for things like forums and another family of passwords for bills/financey things, and I also have different password vintages, so I can remember, oh, yeah, I signed up for that a long time ago when I was mostly using xxxxxxxx, so I can try that one first. I also make frequent use of the Forgot Password feature on many sites.
Oh, and when I get emails that tell me about my passwords, I flag them in Outlook so they are easy to find again.
.-= Darcy´s last blog ..Book: Jacquard’s Web =-.
868 days ago,
Chris P. said:
Most of the time, I hit the “forgot password” link to have it reset or sent in an email to me. That’s my strategy.
868 days ago,
Wendy Cholbi said:
I use a (not free) piece of Mac software called 1Password (the closest PC approximation is called Roboform). I’m very used to it, and I love it, but it did take some getting used to and setting up so it worked with my brain instead of against it.
Now, whenever I have to create a new login identity, I have 1Password generate (and remember) a random password for me. The program can automatically login for me with the correct password the next time I visit the site.
Pro: The program does the work, instead of my brain. These passwords are very secure and I only have to remember my 1Password “master password” to access everything.
Con: I don’t actually *know* the passwords, so I can only use my own computer; it’s not free and took some time to get used to.
I used to use the same password for everything (which I always knew was a big security no-no), because I just couldn’t remember multiple passwords. Now I have a program that does it for me. Which is a big improvement.
.-= Wendy Cholbi´s last blog ..Help save my diabetic cat and send my kids to college! =-.
867 days ago,
Gina said:
Like Wendy, I use 1password and love it! It’s made life so much easier – and secure – not that anything is ever secure.
Yes, the con, like Wendy said is you don’t know your password if you are on another computer, but when I’ve been in that situation, which is very rare bc I have a MacBook and it’s usually with me at home and work, I just reset my password if it’s really something important I need to do.
But I do highly recommend 1password if you are a MAC person.
Cheers! Gina
867 days ago,
Amanda said:
@Jen Exactly. I not only don’t want anyone else accidentally getting hold of my banking passwords and such, I have to protect outside entities websites, banking access, client and customer lists and the lot as well, so security must be paramount. Easy for me to access, hard for them.
Whatever works for ya, right?
867 days ago,
Tami Stackelhouse said:
My hubby & I use SplashID which has the cool benefit of syncing between our iPhones and computer. All we have to remember is the password to get into that & it remembers all the rest. My rocket scientist husband likes to let the software program make up “you’ll never figure it out in a million years” passwords, so I love that I can click the copy button & paste the password. I can copy it without even seeing what the password is. Since it syncs on my iPhone, I have the passwords wherever I am.
It also has places to keep track of any info you want to keep secure, like your social security #, credit card #s, etc.
So far we love it. And it’s secure enough to pass the “I’m a rocket scientist who has worked on top secret projects and I know what makes things secure and what doesn’t” test. LOL!
865 days ago,
jennifer said:
See? This is why I love you so much. Our collective knowledge is greater than any one’s alone. Thank you to everyone who’s commented so far about their techniques and tools!
So far we’ve got KeePass, Password Wallet (shareware), Outlook notes, 1Password (Mac), and SplashID for tools.
For techniques we have a little black book, a password protected spreadsheet, a magic password paper, and Chris’ very original “click ‘forgot password’ every time” (that cracked me up).
Keep ‘em coming!
846 days ago,
Bneato said:
Love that google docs (can be accessed from any computer)