Where and how to store your passwords safely?

[Man]

Salute to all, dear friends!

Every person who uses the Internet has many passwords. And it is unlikely that any of you will be happy if these same passwords leak into the hands of intruders.

To prevent this from happening, you need to follow two simple rules when choosing passwords:

• They have to be complex.
• They should be different on different sites, services, programs.

However, following these rules is almost impossible for a person with an average memory. We highly doubt that any of you are capable of remembering a hundred complex passwords. Fortunately, this is no longer necessary - there are programs for storing passwords.

And today we will tell you in detail about the best of them...

Introducing KeePassXC - the #1 password manager​

KeePassXC is a secure way to store your passwords.

The project is a fork of another password manager KeePassX (which, in turn, is a fork of the original KeePass). The advantage of KeePassXC is its development, or rather its development. KeePassXC is developing quite rapidly and is often updated, thereby receiving new features in the interface of the program itself and bug fixes.

Today, this is the best password manager: reliable and, what is important, open source.

Supports encryption algorithms: AES, Twofish or ChaCha20, is compatible with other password managers - KeePass2, KeePassX, KeeWeb and integration with browsers Google Chrome, Chromium, Mozilla Firefox.

Now let's figure out how to install and use it!

Installing KeePassXC​

• First, go to the download page of the official site (clickable) and download the installation file:

• Run the downloaded file and install the program:

• After installation is complete and you click the button Finish, the program will be launched automatically.

Setting up and using KeePassXC​

Creating a password database​

• When you first launch KeePassXC, you will be asked to confirm automatic checking for updates.
• And then it will offer to create a database in which we will store passwords.
• Click the "Create New Database" button.
• KeePassXC prompts you to create a name. This name will be visible in the title of the password database window.

You can leave it as is, "Passwords".

• Click the "Continue" button.
• The next step allows you to change the encryption settings. You can leave everything as is here. Click "Continue".
• Now you need to come up with a password to protect the entire database. Repeat it in the second line.

This password protects the contents of the database. The password must be strong, and you will have to remember it. If you are afraid of making a mistake, you can click the button with the image of an eye to the right of the master password input field and you will see the characters being entered.

Make sure that no one else is observing this process.

• Click the "Done" button.
• File save dialog. By default, the extension *.kdbx and the name "Passwords" are suggested. It is hardly wise to give the file such a descriptive name.

However, the file name and extension can always be changed.

It is better to store the password database file separately from the KeePassXC program. Do not forget where you store the database, and do not put it in the most obvious places, such as the "Documents" folder or "Desktop".

By default, KeePassXC offers to save your database in a file with the extension .kdbx. This will allow you to immediately recognize the password database in the file. In addition, you will be able to open the database in KeePassXC by double-clicking on the database file.

Unfortunately, a malicious user can do the same. Perhaps it's better not to use the "talking" .kdbx extension.

Some pseudo-experts recommend "masking" the file as a Word document, JPEG image or other familiar format, giving the file the appropriate extension (.doc/.docx, .jpg). This is not very good advice.

A "fake" Word document, of course, will not open in a text editor, and this is another reason for an intruder with access to the computer to suspect deception. Moreover, many programs add recognizable signatures (lines inside the code) to files of "their" formats, which are easy to see even in a simple editor like "Notepad". There will be no such signature in a "fake" Word document.

Our advice:

• Choose a "meaningless" file name and extension.
• Do not use Russian letters.
• Keep the file somewhere out of sight.

Ideally, an attacker should not even have a rough idea of what your password database is called or where to find it.

• After saving the file, the main program window will open:

Let's look at this window. On the left in the column is "Root". This area is intended for groups. You can group passwords to make it easier to find them. For example, groups can be called "Mail", "Website", "Banks". You can rename groups, nest them one inside another, and even assign different icons to groups. Groups resemble folders in the file manager (Windows Explorer), only instead of files, passwords are stored here.

Create, edit, delete a record​

Let's try to save some password in the created database. Each account, each password corresponds to a record.

• Click the third button on the KeePassXC toolbar (the plus button, "Add New Entry"). A new window will open.
• By default, the "Record" item is selected on the left. Let's see what fields KeePassXC offers to fill in:

Title. Allows you to identify the record. The title will help you navigate the database.
Username. What you specify on the site in the "Login" field.
Password. Actually, your password to this account. The cube image to the right of this field is a password generator, more on that later.
URL address. The address of the page where you enter your login and password.
Expires. Automatic reminder that you should change your password. (The password itself, of course, does not change.)

Notes: You can save any useful information in this field. For example, an additional website address, an answer to a "secret question".

• Fill in the fields and click "OK". The new record is created:

This way you will create records for all accounts: email, social networks, favorite websites where you are registered.

• To edit a record, simply double-click on the title. Or right-click on the record and select "Edit Record" from the context menu.
• To delete a record, you can press the Delete button on your keyboard or right-click on the record and select "Delete Record" from the context menu.

Remember that when you create or change records in KeePassXC, the passwords in the accounts do not change automatically. And vice versa: when you change the password on the site, this does not mean that KeePassXC will automatically change it in its database. The database is used only to store passwords, like a notebook is used to store phone numbers.

Classic way to enter sites​

There are three ways to enter passwords from the KeePassXC password database:

• Classic – via clipboard.
• Auto-entry – automation by built-in KeePassXC tools.
• Using a browser plugin.

First, let's look at the most universal first method.

• Open the desired website (the page where you need to enter your login and password).
• Open the KeePassXC program and your password database.
• Select the corresponding entry in KeePassXC. Select the sixth button in the toolbar – "Copy login to clipboard". (Alternatively, right-click on the entry and select the same from the context menu).

In this case, the user name will be saved in the memory buffer for 10 seconds. (The same thing happens when you select text in the editor and press Ctrl+C on the keyboard).

• Place your cursor in the login field on the website, right-click and select "Paste" from the context menu.
• Repeat steps 2 and 3 for the password (the seventh button on the toolbar).
• When the login and password are in their fields on the site, you can log in to the site.

Auto-entry function KeePassXC​

If copying and pasting your username and password from the clipboard is tedious, try the Autotype feature.

1. Open the desired website, login and password entry page. Place the cursor in the "Login" field ("Username" or similar).
2. Open the KeePassXC password database. Select the desired entry and click the ninth button on the toolbar – "Perform auto-entry".

KeePassXС will automatically insert the username and password and log you into the site.

KeePassXC Browser Plugin​

The third way to use KeePassXC to log into websites is with the additional browser extension KeePassXC-Browser. It is available for both Chrome and Firefox. Download and install the extension for your browser. You will need to pair the browser with the password database opened in KeePassXC (that is, the extension will not work "by itself"). This option is enabled as follows: in the toolbar, click the options button (with a gear), then in the left column, select "Browser integration" and check the box "Enable browser integration".

• This is what KeePassXC looks like in the Google Chrome panel:
• Now on pages with forms, the KeePassXC icon will appear right in the input fields. You just need to click for it:

Password Generator​

KeePassXC frees the owner from the need to come up with complex, "tricky" passwords on their own. This work is taken over by the "Password Generator".

• Open the entry for editing.
• Click the cube button next to the "Password" field. (You can click the cube button in the toolbar; then the password generator launch will not be linked to any record in the KeePassXC database.)

In the top field, KeePassXC will offer a strong random password created by the program. For some reason you don't like the password? Click the button with the arrow ("Recreate") to see the next option.

Length. This parameter specifies the number of characters in the password. We recommend using at least 16 characters if the resource (website) allows it. However, you can be generous, you won’t have to remember this password or reproduce it manually anyway. 25-30 characters is a decent password.

Character types. Here you can select the sets from which the characters will be selected to generate the password. By default, uppercase letters, lowercase letters, and numbers are included. By clicking the fourth button, you can add punctuation marks and special characters. Be careful: some systems allow only certain punctuation marks and special characters.

• Generate a password and click the "Use Password" button.
• You can also use a phrase of random words instead of a sequence of characters (according to modern ideas about the reliability of password phrases, 6-7 words are recommended). Select the "Password Phrase" tab. You can select a character to separate words if you want.

Blocking the database​

As a rule, it is convenient to open the KeePassXC database at the beginning of work and close it at the very end. But what if you need to leave for a short time, say, to have a cup of coffee?

For this purpose, it is convenient not to open and close the database, but to quickly lock it.

• Just click the tenth button on the toolbar (with the lock):
• The database will disappear from the screen. To open it again, you need to enter the password to the database.

Changing the database password​

Like all other passwords, your database password should be changed from time to time.

• Open the password database. Select in the menu "Database - Database Security..." - button "Change password".
• Enter the new password twice and click the "OK" button.

Disabling database autoloading​

Click the 11th button (with a gear icon) on the toolbar to go to the KeePassXC program settings.

Please note the following points:

• Remember previously used databases
• Load previous databases on startup
• Remember key files and hardware security keys for databases

It is very convenient if the program finds the database upon startup and prompts you to enter a password. But this is not always good from a security point of view.

You might not want an attacker to run KeePassXC and immediately discover which file you store your passwords in.

• Then uncheck the box "Remember previously used databases" (the checkboxes in the other two boxes will disappear automatically):

Changing the time for the memory buffer​

It often happens that the default 10 seconds for copying the password from the memory buffer is not enough. You can increase this time, for example, to 30 seconds.

• Click the gear button on the toolbar.
• Select "Security" in the left column.
• Make sure the first box "Clear clipboard after" has a check mark. Change the value "10 sec" to "30 sec" and click "OK".

This change will apply to all records and password databases.

Trash and History Settings​

KeePassXC has a "Recycle Bin". The entries you delete are first placed there.

When you first start using KeePassXC, when there is a risk of accidental errors, it may be best to keep the Recycle Bin enabled. If you want to disable the Recycle Bin for security reasons, do the following:

• Open the password database.
• Select "Database Options" from the "Database" menu.
• Uncheck the box next to "Use Recycle Bin" and click "OK".

Disabling the "Recycle Bin" is only possible for each password database individually.

In this same settings section, you can change the "history" settings, that is, records of changes to your password database.

FAQ​

QUESTION: Is there a way to recover a forgotten password to the database?
ANSWER: No. For security reasons.

QUESTION: Is it possible to enable two-factor authentication in KeePassXC?
ANSWER. Yes. For example, you can add a key file to the password. Then, every time you open the password database, you will need to not only know the password, but also have the key file.

QUESTION: Is it possible to copy the KeePassXC password database file, for example, to a flash drive?
ANSWER. Yes. You can make copies of this file. In general, creating backup copies is very important. Be sure to do this, and preferably more often (after all significant changes in the database).

QUESTION: Does this work on mobile devices?
ANSWER. Yes, via third-party applications. Here is a full list of them. We recommend Keepass2Android for Android, Strongbox for iOS. Since KeePassXC stores the password database locally, not on the Internet, you will have to synchronize the databases manually. For example, upload the filled database from your computer to the "cloud", and then open it from the cloud on your smartphone.

QUESTION: There are also programs KeePass and KeePassX. Are they the same or something different?
ANSWER. KeePass is a password manager for Windows. KeePassX is an abandoned project, no longer updated. All of them are compatible in password database format. For example, a password database created in KeePass can be opened and used in KeePassXC.

QUESTION: Is LastPass better or worse? And 1Password? And Roboform? And…
ANSWER. All of these are representatives of the password manager family. We recommend KeePassXC based on a number of criteria: functionality, open source, free, well-known, Russian language support, etc. This is a great choice if you want to keep your passwords at hand without trusting third-party storage.