Strong, encrypted passwords are important to your business, and password managers can help. Here is a look at a few tips to help find the best password manager.
Passwords for your business email, passwords for accounting, passwords to log in to apps, passwords for private files—the average business owner can have an astounding number of passwords to create and remember. Installing a password manager for your business is one of the most important things you can do, but not every platform for password management is the same.
James Forbis with 4BIS.COM, a Cincinnati IT services professional shares insights into what organizations should look for with password managers.
- Make sure the manager has excellent security functions.
First and foremost, it’s critical that the password manager you choose for your business accounts offers the utmost in security features. Security is the prime function of your manager beyond helping you keep track of your credentials. A few good security features of the best password manager for business include:
- Automatic alerts when someone tries to access your accounts
- Immediate warnings if existing passwords are too weak
- Reminders when passwords need to be changed or updated
- Two-factor authentication to access the password manager itself
- 256-bit encryption capabilities
- Look for a password manager that is compatible with all devices.
Most businesses are filled with multiple devices that are used to access business accounts and networks. Smartphones, tablets, and other mobile devices, as well as internet-connected printers, computers, laptops, and other devices, will need to be compatible with the password manager you choose. Not all devices have the same kind of operating system, which is too much for simple-form password managers designed to work with only one device. Look for a business password manager that can transition between devices without issue.
- Find a password manager that offers auto-fill capabilities.
Password managers give you secure passwords to use, and they can recall them for you for every account you have the manager save. However, it is also best if the password manager you use for your business offers auto-fill capabilities so you do not have to manually open the platform every time you log in just to retrieve a password.
- Make sure the provider uses zero-knowledge encryption.
Zero-knowledge encryption ensures that only you, the user, get to see the information you key in. Even though people know encryption is important, many business owners fail to recognize the importance of zero-knowledge encryption when it comes to business password managers. With this attribute, no one on the other side, not even the platform developer, will be able to see your passwords; it will only be data you can retrieve.
- The password manager must have a complex password generator.
Password generators are the most basic function offered by most business password managers, and they can be super helpful if you have a lot of accounts and credentials to use that need to be different. Even though most password managers do have a random password generator, not every platform is going to give you the ability to generate the most complex passwords. For instance, the best random password generators will create passwords that are as much as 36 characters long, a random mix of letters and numbers, and have special characters incorporated. Passwords like these are practically impossible to memorize and extremely hard to hack.
With these tips, you should be able to track down a business-worthy password manager that will properly protect all of your accounts. Work with a managed IT service provider if you need help with tracking down the absolute best business password manager.
Dorothy has been a journalist for ten years and has been working with the Tech News Watch staff since the beginning of the news site. Her main contribution to Tech News Watch are mobile, IT and science news, with a focus on software updates and great outer space discoveries.