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How a password manager made my life easier

How a password manager made my life easier

When I got a new phone for my birthday, I finally realized what a mess my old phone was: apps I no longer used were taking up data, I had a zillion different passwords with no way of organizing them, and I had forgotten and changed my banking passwords so many times I was practically inviting someone to hack my info. My tech savvy brother suggested I get Dashlane, a digital security app, to start my new phone off right. So, while most of my friends were going on cleansing diets and new exercise plans for the summer, I resolved to commit to my online security—and I swear, it felt just as amazing. Here's how easy it was.

Besides unlimited password storage across devices, Dashlane provides secure form auto-fill, file storage for sensitive documents, and web monitoring, which alerts you the moment any of your personal data has been or could be breached. Once I downloaded the app to my phone, I made changes to my digital life that helped me organize my information and feel more secure. Here's a taste of what I was able to do with Dashlane:

  • All of my passwords were changed using an automatic safe password generator (goodbye "password1234") and saved. Getting rid of old passwords and changing commonly used ones was actually cathartic!
  • Dashlane takes care of auto-fill, but if I ever did want to access any of my passwords, only I can do it with one master password. So nice to feel like everything is in one place, like having a well-organized closet or pantry after spring cleaning.
  • I saved important documents like my passport right to my phone using secure file storage, so I wouldn't have to scroll through hours of photos or emails to find my passport number. This was crucial, since I travel frequently.
  • I moved all of my notes to Dashlane's secure system and organized them--kind of like a diary with a super secure lock.
  • I used Inbox Scan to find out which of my online accounts were vulnerable to compromised personal information and strengthened my passwords ASAP.

My new phone felt like a fortress that only I could have access to, and that made me feel much, much safer. Plus, making this small change in my digital life is especially significant in light of all the data breaches in the news recently. While I still deleted a few apps—candy crush was turning into an addiction, and I never really did take to daily horoscopes—I was able to keep, and automatically login, to the ones I kept with secure passwords, and not feel as though my online presence was a complete and utter mess. So, this summer, forget the juice cleanse; Dashlane is a free, easy, and painless way to start cleaning up your digital act.