Fresh Thoughts #5: Password Managers Are Becoming Collateral Damage
- Newsletter
Password Managers Are Becoming Collateral Damage
“LastPass has disappeared again.” 🤬🤬🤬
Since Christmas, it's the fourth time my password manager has disappeared from my browser.
The last 3 times, I could go back to the beginning and reinstall. But, this time... nope, it's a separate app.
Wow. 😬
The experience of using a password manager was brilliant: click-select-autofill-go.
It was contextual, and just looking at the iPad logged you in. Beautiful.
Now it's: click-search-click-click-paste-click-search-click-click-paste-go.
This makes me not want to use a password manager.
I work in cybersecurity and believe that password managers are fundamental to better security practices. But I'm not sure I want to use one, not when it's like this.
What's going on?
Google's Chrome says, “Let me save your password.”
Apple's Safari says, “Let me save your password.”
This is the threshold of a tech-walled garden. A Hotel California - easy to get in, but hard to leave. Tech companies love them because it's about lock-in and market share.
But as we see with the hullabaloo around blue-bubbles and green-bubbles and location beacons, tech companies aren't good at sharing. Cross-platform be damned. We must turn the travelling password management sellers out of our walled garden. Lock customers into our web browser on all devices, and let's ignore passwords for mobile apps.
It seems like tech companies are prioritising market share and lock-in over security convenience.
This is a wrong turn and a bad move.
It's also turning into tit-for-tat skirmishes that are degrading the confidence in password managers as a whole.
Fine LastPass take a retaliatory swipe at Google. But does it come with a greater cost?
As ever, Fresh Security is looking for strategic solutions for our customers. 1Password and Dashlane may be fairing better in the short term, but is it sustainable?
We'll keep you posted.
Why Security Needs a Minty Flavour
We brush our teeth because of the feeling and the taste of mint. Long-term benefits are a secondary thought.
What is the minty feeling for security?
When we work that out - keeping your company and school secure will become a habit, just like brushing your teeth.
March 8, 20222 Minutes Read
