Had It With LastPass Free? Here Are Some Alternatives – PCMag.com

I first met LastPass in 2008, and it was love at first sight. Nobody had ever offered to manage my passwords in quite such a convenient way. Im sure Im not the only one who feels that way. Oh, I havent been exclusive with LastPass. I went with Dashlane for a good while, and now I rely on Keeper. But I always figured LastPass would be there for me, for free. Lately, though, the relationship has hit a rough patch. First, LastPass locked Emergency Access behind the paywall. Now, I have to choose between using it on mobile devices or on desktops, but not both.

The thing is, syncing between desktop and mobile devices is one of the best things about a password manager. You can do any complicated stuff like setting up password inheritance on the nice big desktop screen, but easily fill passwords on your smartphone with just a touch to authenticate. Take away that ability and you dont really have a full password manager anymore

Do you feel like its time to break up with LastPass? Maybe you need some relationship advice? Here are a few password manager alternatives to put a smile back on your face.

Most password managers store your essential data in the cloud. Its super-encrypted so that even the password company cant get at it, but cloud storage just bothers some security-conscious folks. With the free Myki app, your passwords live primarily on your phone, syncing to other devices as needed. And youre necessarily using two-factor authentication, since access requires both your phone and your master password.

You can import passwords from other utilities, including LastPass. And Myki checks all the boxes when it comes to advanced features. You can securely share your passwords with trusted partners, or arrange to pass your data to a digital heir in the event of your death. An actionable password strength report helps you tune those weak and duplicate passwords. It even replaces Google Authenticator for sites that support that form of two-factor authentication.

The cloud is just somebody elses computer. If you dont like the idea of having your passwords floating in the cloud, Myki is the way to go.

If we assigned star ratings based strictly on the number of features, LogMeOnce would get about nine stars. This password suite is absolutely bursting with features. Most of them are available at the free level, with limitations. For example, free users can share five passwords while top-tier paying customers have no limit on sharing. Free users can enable two-factor authentication using email or Google Authenticator, while paying customers have many more choices including authentication by Yubikey.

There are no limits on the number of passwords you can save or the number of devices you can sync. All the expected features such as password capture and replay, form filling, and password strength analysis are available for free. As noted, secure sharing is available, though limited, and you can define a beneficiary to inherit your passwords.

Free LogMeOnce users get support via email, something that will soon be taken away from free LastPass users. Yes, top-tier LogMeOnce customers can use live chat, but email is certainly better than nothing. And stylistically, LogMeOnce is more like LastPass than Myki is.

Security through obscurity never works. If the protection of your passwords depends on some big secret key or algorithm, then a hacker who steals that key or cracks that algorithm owns you. Open-source software is the cure for security through obscurity. Experts can (and do) pore over open-source code to winkle out any defects. If youre on the open-source bandwagon, Bitwarden is the password manager for you.

Bitwarden takes security seriously. Consider this possible master password: 123Abc!123Abc!123Abc! Its 21 characters long and uses all character types, so a simple strength algorithm would rate it mighty strong. But Bitwarden notices the patterns and repetition and therefore marks it as weak. You will have to use Bitwardens online portal to import your LastPass passwordsthat feature isnt internal to the app.

You can use Google Authenticator (or a workalike) to enable two-factor authentication in Bitwarden. As with LogMeOnce, paying customers get more two-factor options, including Yubikey.

While Bitwarden doesnt support password inheritance at this time, you can use it to securely share passwords (though the free edition limits you to sharing with one other user). It performs all the expected password management tasks, with flair. If youre an open-source enthusiast, check this one out right away.

Wait, you say, arent we getting away from LastPass? Certainly, the free edition just isnt as desirable as it once was. But if youre giving any consideration at all to a paid alternative such as Dashlane or Keeper, you should at least give a thought to LastPass Premium.

Yes, youll have to suck up your resentment at paying for what you used to get for free. Its not a great feeling. But on the other hand, youre totally familiar with how LastPass works. You dont have to worry about the possibility that the export / import process might mess up some passwords that you dont notice until its too late. Its just that good ol LastPass that you know, plus additional features like enhanced two-factor choices and managing application passwords.

A LastPass Premium subscription costs $36 per year. Dashlane is a good bit more, at $59 per year. Keeper goes for $34.99 per year. If youre going to pay something, if its not going to be free, these prices arent hugely different.

So, those are your choices. Strike up a new password manager relationship and stay free. Stick with the familiar and pay for the LastPass that used to be free. Or do bothchoose a new password manager and pay for it.

Read the original here:

Had It With LastPass Free? Here Are Some Alternatives - PCMag.com