Forgot your password — again? Try this
Yahoo Life, part of the Verizon Media family of brands, is committed to finding you the best products at the best prices. Some of the products written about here are offered in affiliation with Verizon Media. We may receive a share from purchases made via links on this page. Pricing and availability are subject to change.
Forgetting your password is a serious lesson in learning to cope with frustration. Whether you just want to buy something quickly or need to check an account, it's hard not to freak out and yell, "I forgot my password!" when it happens to you.
Instead, you have to do what you always do. Click on the link to reset your password, wait for an email to show up in your inbox, click on that link, and then spend too many minutes trying to think up a new password that's both secure and one you'll actually remember the next time around.
There is a better way, though — namely, password manager software. Password managers can help generate new passwords for you and store them in one spot, so you don't have to keep track of multiple passwords across several different sites. Human brains are often "unable to remember lots of different complex, randomly-generated passwords and so a secure password manager is a necessity," computer security expert Graham Cluley, co-host of the Smashing Security podcast, tells Yahoo Life.
Try LastPass Premium, part of Yahoo Plus Secure, risk-free for 30 days.
Install LastPass Premium, and the password manager software will create passwords for every single account you have — from your credit card accounts to your email, social media, streaming services, or any account that retains your payment information. It will then store the passwords securely across all of your devices. So no more mentally freaking out about forgetting your password — it's done for you.
LastPass Premium's password generator creates long, randomized and secure passwords to help guard against online security threats. It also offers unlimited password storage so you don't have to worry about hitting a limit.
Shop it: LastPass Premium, part of Yahoo Plus Secure, risk-free for 30 days, subscriptions.yahoo.com
If you've never used a password manager before, it's understandable that you might have some questions. Here's what you need to know about them, and why they can be so important for protecting you online:
You won't forget your password again
At its core, a password manager is designed to store all of your passwords across a range of websites. Then, when you need to login somewhere, the password manager will fill in the blanks for you. No need to remember a bunch of passwords or feeling frustrated because you forgot your password yet again — it's all there for you.
By the way, it's still a good idea to at least try to remember the "extremely sensitive" passwords you have, Joseph Steinberg, cybersecurity and emerging technologies advisor, tells Yahoo Life. "Those passwords should be memorized," he says. ?
It can help generate more secure passwords
"If you have a weak password, it makes it easier for hackers to gain access to your account and exploit it," Cluely says.
Coming up with a secure password on your own can take a little thought, though. If you prefer to do it on your own, Steinberg offers up this advice:
? Combine three or more unrelated words and proper nouns, with numbers separating them. His example: “desktop8jonathan3goats.” "Such a password is far easier to remember than 'w4x&Py6Q,'" Steinberg says, adding, "In general, the longer the words, the better."
? Add a special character in between. Some sites require you to add special characters (think: @, #, $, %, &, !). For those, Steinberg says you can simply add your special character between words and numbers, like “desktop!8jonathan!3goats.”
? Use at least one non-English word or proper name. You want it to be something you're familiar with, but that others wouldn't guess, Steinberg says. For example: “louvre!8iyengar!3goats.”
? Couple capital letters together. "To increase password strength even further without making memorization difficult, consider using a couple of capital letters that always appear in a particular location throughout all of your strong passwords," Steinberg says, adding that the last two letters of the second word can help. Example: “louvre!8iyengAR!3goats.”
If that seems like a lot for you to think of on your own, or if you know there's no way you'll be able to remember a password like that, a password manager can do it for you.
You only need to remember one password
For ultimate online security, "you should have a different password for each service. Never reuse passwords," Cluely says. So, ideally, you'll have a bunch of different passwords at your disposal — and that's a lot to keep track of.
With a password manager, you just need to remember one password — the one for your password manager. That's a huge improvement from the status quo.
Shop it: LastPass Premium, part of Yahoo Plus Secure, risk-free for 30 days, subscriptions.yahoo.com
Read more from Yahoo Life:
Beware of these 5 bad password habits — and how clean up them up now
Overwhelmed by pop-up ads? Beware of these 5 signs your computer might be infected
How to talk to your kids about online scams — and keep them safe
Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day
Want daily pop culture news delivered to your inbox? Sign up here for Yahoo Entertainment & Lifestyle's newsletter.
