Password tools

If you want to download a package of all Windows password recovery tools in one zip file, click here. The password to extract the files is nirsoft!

Click here to read more about false alerts in Antivirus programs As you may know, I removed the command-line options that exports the passwords to a file from all major password-recovery tools. You can find the reason for removing the command-line options in this Blog post. If you need to use the command line options of these password-recovery tools For legal purposes only!! Enter 'download' as the user name, and 'nirsoft! After downloading the package, extract the files from it using the following password: nirsoft!

If you want to get more information about the locations in the Registry or in the file system that the passwords are stored, you can read this: Password Storage Locations For Popular Windows Applications. It supports the new Internet Explorer 7. BulletsPassView BulletsPassView is a password recovery tool that reveals the passwords stored behind the bullets in the standard password text-box of Windows operating system and Internet Explorer Web browser.

RouterPassView Windows utility that can recover lost passwords from configuration file saved by a router. With just one master password, or in some cases a PIN or your fingerprint, you can autofill a form or password field. Some also feature online storage and an encrypted vault for storing documents. All our best password manager picks come in free versions, which typically let you securely store passwords for one device -- although our pick for the best free manager can currently be used for syncing across multiple devices -- and all handle hardware authentication through YubiKey.

Our best password security manager picks also feature subscription options that let you sync your secure password login information across devices, share credentials with trusted family and friends, and get access to secure online storage.

And if transparency is important to you, several of our picks are open-source projects. We also look at what a password manager is, its security features and the basics of how to use one.

Note that these password manager services are independently chosen by our editors. We'll be updating this story periodically as new options become available. In light of our top choice's recent pricing change, we may be reconsidering the order in the near future, and will update this story accordingly.

Bitwarden leads the list of the best password managers for thanks to both its open-source roots and its unbeatable -- and unlimited -- free version. This lean encryption software can generate, store and automatically fill your passwords across all of your devices and popular browsers -- including Brave and Tor -- with competitive security strength.

Its free version lacks some of the bells and whistles of our other picks, but its premium versions are just as feature-rich. Just like its closest competitors, a Bitwarden premium subscription allows you to share passwords, logins, memberships and other items with trusted family and friends, use multifactor authentication through YubiKey and get 1 gigabyte of encrypted storage.

Although it has fewer features than the premium version, Bitwarden's free version also offers a one-to-one texting feature called Bitwarden Send which allows you to securely share login information with another person.

If you're looking for a user-friendly free service with an excellent security reputation, it's hard to pass up Bitwarden, which made it into CNET's Cheapskate Hall of Fame as the best free password manager. Plus it has a password sharing feature so you can share all your login info with another person. Both subscription tiers come with a day money back guarantee. Read our Bitwarden review. The free version of LastPass once made it stand out as the best password manager in this category by giving you the ability to store passwords, user login info and credentials and sync all of it wherever you want across both your mobile devices or your browsers.

And while you can currently view and manage passwords across mobile and desktop devices, as of March 16 , you'll have to choose to use the free version for either mobile or desktop. The Premium version of the password manager also allows you to share passwords, logins, memberships and other items with trusted family and friends, use multifactor authentication through YubiKey and get 1 gigabyte of encrypted storage.

Meanwhile, the Families plan gives you six individual accounts, shared folders and a dashboard for managing the family accounts and keeping an eye on your account's security. No, LastPass isn't flawless: A vulnerability privately reported in September was a scary flaw that could potentially compromise passwords. But the company patched it before it was known to be exploited in the wild.

It was one of several vulnerabilities that have been discovered in LastPass over the years. More recently, however, privacy and security concerns emerged around LastPass' Android app when a privacy advocacy project discovered seven web trackers within the mobile app. In light of these concerns and LastPass' new restrictions on its free-tier service, we're reevaluating LastPass' rank in our list of top password managers.

Read our LastPass review. Read more: LastPass vs. If you're looking for a trusted password manager app to keep your login information private and secure, 1Password is the best password manager for the task, letting you access your accounts and services with one master password. It's available for all major device platforms. This nicely designed password manager lacks a free version, but you can check it out for 14 days before signing up. Alas, that's down from the earlier day trial period.

A travel mode lets you remove your 1Password sensitive data from your device when you travel and then restore it with one easy click when you return, so that it's not vulnerable to border checks. Each person gets their own password vault, and it's easy to control who you share information with and what they can do with it.

You can also create separate guest accounts for password sharing to share Wi-Fi connection passwords, for example, or home alarm codes with guests. Read more: The best web hosting providers. Bitwarden, LastPass and 1Password are solid, affordable or free password keepers, and in a straw poll of CNET staffers, they were about neck-and-neck in use. But if you find none of our three recommended password managers works quite how you want, a handful of other apps are worth considering.

These all have free versions available. Dashlane provides a simple and secure way to manage your passwords and keep other login information stored. Just for managing passwords, we like it as much as our picks, but the free Dashlane app limits you to one device and 50 passwords. A free version gives you unlimited password storage on one device.

KeePass, another open-source software password manager, started on Windows and has been ported using the same code base to other platforms, including MacOS, Android and iOS.

On the plus side, it's totally free and endorsed by the Electronic Frontier Foundation. On the other hand, it's really for advanced users only: Its user interface takes a bit of fiddling to get all the independently built versions of KeePass to work together. There's been a shift in the market for VPN and antivirus software in recent months.

Many of the companies behind these software packages are expanding them to become wider software suites. We haven't specifically reviewed these password storage managers, if only because they don't yet appear to have a feature set or pricing option that beats any of our preferred options above. If and when that changes, we'll check them out in more detail. Still need more info on what password managers are, and why they're better than the alternatives?

Read on. To get started, a password manager will record the username and password you use when you first sign in to a website or service.