softwareSoftware Tips

Managing your Passwords: LastPass

 
Do you have sticky notes around your computer with your passwords on them? Are you storing them in a word document or someplace else that’s really not secure?

Well, let’s talk about a secure way to utilize a password manager and also share that with people who need to know the information without giving away all of your security. We utilize LastPass for our clients and for our practice.

LastPass is just one of many secure password managers that you can use to make sure that all of your passwords are documented and yet not available to the outside world in a secure environment. So LastPass will allow you to save your passwords for all different types of websites. I probably have a thousand different passwords for different places and websites, and it does an excellent job of saving those.

Now that’s a common thread amongst all password managers, but let’s talk about what you can do with sharing. So with sharing you can allow somebody else to utilize your password manager, to log in the things, but maybe not see the password.

So if you have a commonly used password which is a no no, but everybody has one, that you don’t want everybody else to see. You can still allow them to log into a website as long as they have the share in LastPass, but they still won’t be able to see it. It will be hidden behind the little dots when they log in. So it’s still a secure way to allow someone to log into a website using your credentials.

So let’s talk about this in a frame of reference. Let’s say that you have employees who need to log in to gather some information, but you don’t want to have to change the password every time an employee leaves or worry that they’re logging in from home to collect your data or steal your client list.

You can use LastPass in a way to share that password, to let them log in, but they still can’t see the actual password and take it home with them. So that’s a nifty way to handle it, there were other competing services out there. There’s also 1Password, let’s talk a little bit for a moment about the difference between storing this in your key chain, through Apple or Google.

Those are really not secure password managers, anybody who can log into your Google account can see those. So if you leave your computer for a moment, people can log in and look at that information. Nobody hacks it. They can log in and look at that information.

So please don’t use a password manager through Google or through your Apple key chain. Use a reputable product like LastPass to make sure that your passwords are secure and able to have people access them who need them without giving away the farm. Hope you have a great day, thank you.

I’m Donna Bordeaux from Calculate Moves. Please follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Make sure you check out our blog and our website from the link below. Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell to be notified when we post. To contact me, email me at donna@calculatedmoves.com.

Donna Bordeaux, CPA with Calculated Moves

Creativity and CPAs don’t generally go together.  Most people think of CPAs as nerdy accountants who can’t talk with people.  Well, it’s time to break that stereotype.  Lively, friendly and knowledgeable can be a part of your relationship with your CPA as demonstrated by Donna and Chad Bordeaux.  They have over 50 years of combined experience as entrepreneurial CPAs.  They’ve owned businesses and helped business owners exceed their wildest dreams.   They have been able to help businesses earn many times more profit than the average business in the same industry and are passionate about helping industries that help families build great memories.