Setting up a password manager

A password manager is a safe place that remembers your passwords for you. You unlock it with one password, or with your face or fingerprint.

Why it helps

Each account should have its own strong password. If you use the same password everywhere, a thief who learns it once can open all of your accounts. A manager makes different passwords easy, because you no longer need to remember them.

Choices that work well

• Apple Passwords app. Built into iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Nothing extra to download.
• Google Password Manager. Built into Chrome and Android phones.
• A paper booklet kept at home. This is a fine choice too. Keep it in a drawer at home, not in your purse or car. Write each website, your username, and your password.

Please avoid

• A note or document named "passwords" on your computer.
• An email to yourself with your passwords in it.
• A sticky note on the computer screen.

Getting started

1. Pick one of the choices above. If you are not sure which, ask us.
2. Start with your email account and your bank. Add the others over time.
3. Let the manager suggest new passwords when it offers.

We can set it up with you at your kitchen table. You do the tapping. We will explain each step. Afterward we leave a written page showing how to use it.

Still stuck? Call us at (540) 613-1472.