A Beginner’s Guide to 1Password
Using a password manager these days is essentially Internet Security 101, but that doesn’t make them any less daunting. If you’ve never used a password manager, it’s annoying, awkward to use, and confusing at first glance. 1Password is one of the easiest options to use, but that doesn’t mean you don’t need help setting it up.
Password managers create strong passwords that are difficult to crack, they keep track of those passwords so you don’t need to remember them, and they make it easy to change your passwords after being cracked. You have tons of great options for password managers , but for this guide, we’ll focus on 1Password . With 1Password, you can sync your password across all your devices using their cloud service. Dropbox or iCloud and it works on all major operating systems. Unlike 1Password’s biggest competitor, LastPass , your passwords can also be stored locally instead of in the cloud. Which password manager you use is a matter of preference and depends on what you need; none of them are perfect and they all have their strengths and weaknesses.
However, if you’re here because you already own 1Password, let’s go ahead and start using it.
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Decide which payment plan you want and create an account
Although 1Password has a trial version that you can use for free for 30 days, thereafter the service becomes a paid service. You can choose between two different payment models, subscription or one-time purchase. A one-time purchase costs $ 65 and only works for Mac. You wo n’t get password sync between devices (like phone and desktop) with this purchase, although you can manually sync passwords between devices using Dropbox or iCloud .
Otherwise, you have two subscription options: $ 3 per month for yourself, or $ 5 per month for the family plan. The family plan includes up to five people. With the subscription plan, you get sync using 1Password servers. Most people will probably want to use a subscription plan.
Once you’ve made your selection, go to the 1Password website and create an account . This requires a few steps, including checking your email and downloading a custom PDF file. This PDF is essential for setting up 1Password, so don’t lose it. It includes the QR code you need to add any apps to your 1Password account, and your Secret Key, which is the only way to recover your 1Password account if you lose your password.
Download and install 1Password for your computer, browser and phone
Now that you’ve decided which payment method to use, it’s time to actually install the software. This process is slightly different from what you are probably used to.
- Download 1Password for Windows , Mac , iOS, or Android .
- Log in to your account.
- Click or tap Scan Account Information.
- Scan the installation QR code in the PDF you downloaded when you created your account. If you don’t have it, you can get it from the 1Password web app.
- Download the 1Password browser extension for your browser. This is how you will use 1Password most of the time.
You will have to go through this process for every application on every operating system. Once everything is set up, you can actually start using 1Password.
Start browsing and saving login details for each site
While you might want to go out of your way to add other login information to 1Password, the easiest thing to do is just use the internet as usual and save your passwords as you sign in to each new site. This way, 1Password Browser Extensions do the job for you. It’s a pretty straightforward process:
- When you visit the site, log in as usual.
- When prompted by 1Password, click Save Login.
That’s it for everyday use. However, it’s worth remembering that one of the main reasons for using a password manager is to create new, strong passwords, so it’s worth consideringchanging passwords as you go.
Likewise, when you create a new account at any time in the future, you can let 1Password create a password for you by clicking the 1Password icon in your browser and then Password Generator. Once you enter your new password, 1Password will automatically detect and remember the new password.
Use 1Password to Sign In to Sites on Mobile Devices
While you probably don’t create many accounts from your smartphone, you will most likely sign in to many of them. It’s pretty easy to do this with 1Password. You have several ways to do this.
On both Android and iOS, you can always just copy / paste the passwords from the app to your browser of choice. IPhone users can also use the extension to log into the site right in Safari. When you’re on the Safari login page, just click the Share button, then 1Password, then choose your login information. You may need to manually enable this button by first clicking the Share button, then another, and then clicking the 1Password switch.
On Android, you’ll use the 1Password keyboard to do this . Open 1Password, then tap Settings> Fillout. Tap Turn on keyboard. Now that you are on the login page in any browser, switch to the 1Password keyboard by pressing the keyboard button, then click the Enter Username and Enter Password buttons to enter your login information.
Use 1Password to check your wacky passwords
1Password includes a security auditing feature that is really worth checking out after you’ve entered most of your passwords. An audit can check for duplicate passwords, weak passwords, and even lets you know if any site you have an account with has been compromised.
In the 1Password app, click on the Security Audit sidebar. You will find another list here. The Watchtower is probably the coolest here. Click the Watchtower, then click the Enable button to turn it on. The Watchtower monitors website vulnerabilities and alerts you if a problem is found. So, for example, if eBay has been hacked, Watchtower will inform you that it is time to change your eBay password. If this happens, you will see a pop-up red bar on the page. You can click on it to get more information about the hack, or simply change your password.
The security audit sections include several other different lists, including weak passwords, duplicate passwords, and old passwords. Click on any of them and 1Password will show you where to change your password. This is really useful when you are just getting started with a password manager because you probably have a lot of duplicate or weak passwords. While it’s cumbersome to fix and fix the whole thing at first, it’s worth going through here and adding more accurate passwords where needed. After all, once all of your passwords have been updated, the entire security audit section should be blank.
Add personal information to quickly fill out the form
Besides passwords, 1Password can store a ton of other information as well. This includes information to automatically fill out forms on websites, such as credit card numbers or your address, as well as a place to store any other personal information that you want to keep close at hand.
Click Identities in the sidebar, then click Edit. Here you can add your address, phone number, date of birth and other details. Once you do this, 1Password can automatically fill out this information in web forms when you meet them. Likewise, if you click on Credit Cards in the sidebar, you can add different credit card numbers so you don’t have to enter them every time you buy something.
You can also use 1Password to store other personal information you may need at any time. In the desktop application, click File> New Item to find a drop-down menu where you can add information such as driver’s license number, software licenses, wireless passwords, and more. This is completely optional and in fact does not help with the security of your passwords, but it is a convenient way to keep most of your personal information close at hand.