A password manager is an application program that runs on a computer, phone, or tablet. It encrypts and can generate passwords for Websites and other things, all of which are stored in a single file called a password vault, store, or locker. On Mac OS, passwords are stored in an object called a keychain, which is really the same thing as the aforementioned. Every time a Website is visited and a password to log in is required, the user presses a special key combination to wake up the password manager, which prompts the user for the master password to unlock the password store, and the password manager puts the login information into the Web form and dispatches it.


Some password managers, like 1Pass and LastPass, store other kinds of private and protectable information, like software licenses and registrations, credit cards, etc. These items must be manually retrieved when needed since there is no way to tell an information manager where and how a piece of data can or should be exposed. Websites are a specific case, though.


You can search for more password managers, but these three have been found to be very usable and accessible:


1Password, http://www.1password.com

KeePass, http://www.keepass.info

LastPass, http://www.lastpass.com


HTH