By now you will know you need to have a safe password manager. The best password is one you don't even know, but if you're not used to using a password manager, setting one up and changing all your passwords if you've been using poor ones) might seem overwhelming. There are a variety of additional features to sweeten the offer that most common password managers bring with them that can make the effort even more worthwhile.
It seems like some big corporation or website has been hacked every other week, possibly exposing your password. Keeping up with which places are secure and where you might need to change your password can be exhausting. Usually, following a hack, a website will contact you and let you know you need to change your password, but not all do. Password managers should let you know when an account has been compromised and notify you when a site has been compromised, instead of obsessively watching the news to find out about the latest breach.
Since your password manager knows what your new password is after all, that's its job) and when it has been added to your vault, it will notify you if your password hasn't been changed since a known hack took place. All these passwords are compiled in one location by most password managers, so you can search and change them if you need to.
Enabling two-factor authentication anywhere it is available is almost more necessary than providing a good password. Two-factor authentication uses codes that are produced or sent to your phone to confirm that you are not only who you say you are but that you have everything that you said you would have (namely, your phone). This offers an additional layer of protection, preventing your account from being compromised by someone who only has your username and password.
Not every website, sadly, allows this functionality. Although you are encouraged to turn it on by some major sites, several sites still provide it as an optional security feature hidden in the settings of your account. Many password managers can highlight accounts you have with two-factor authentication services, so if you haven't already, you can allow it. This is a very useful function and to make sure that you have two-factor allowed in as many places as possible, it is worth testing your list from time to time.
Passwords aren't the only confidential data you may want to preserve. In any online store you shop with for example, you can not store your credit card information, but you can save that information in a password manager. For the card number itself, expiration dates, and security codes, inserting a credit card number into your vault requires space. If it's about to expire, the best password managers also warn you or flag your card details, and auto-fill it when you buy on a new platform.
There will be room for anything from your driver's license, social security number, bank account information, or any other data you may need to keep secure, depending on the password manager you use. A good candidate to go here is any details that you may be tempted to write on a post-it note or hold in an envelope in the junk drawer.
In general, you don't want anyone else to have an account with your password. All the exceptions are here. Whether it's a joint account with your partner for a service or the Netflix username you share with everyone in the home, the easiest way to do things is often to share a password.
However, the use of a poor or memorable password is also not a good idea (especially for something like the utilities). Instead of sharing a long, complex password and telling the individual you have shared it with each time you change it most password managers allow you to share a password with someone else (as long as they use the same password manager, in most cases). Person passwords or limited password sets may be exchanged with family or team members at work.
For confidential documents such as business receipts or a copy of your will, password managers are also intended to act as a vault. Although they may not be directly aimed at storing particular images, they may function that way. Technically, the best way to keep private pictures of yourself out of the wrong hands is to never take them at all but it's naive to believe that nobody would take the risk in a time of social isolation. So at least practice safe sexting if you are going to do it.
Apps like 1Password and Dashlane allow users to securely store files. Although "files" can mean any file you want, storing any files you want to keep under extra security is a convenient place. Password managers are not intended to be gallery applications, so looking at any photos you save later on will not be as easy, but it will also help avoid prying eyes from swiping to them when something else is seen on your screen. After you copy them inside just make sure to delete any local copies of files that remain outside the vault.
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