Take back control of your passwords by abandoning the managers built into web browsers and migrating all your credentials to a secure third-party manager, synchronized across all your devices.
Like many Internet users, you have undoubtedly made the choice to let your Web browser manage your username and password for you. You may also use the same password, or variations of the same password, to log into various online services.
Whether it’s out of sheer laziness or convenience, letting your web browser manage your passwords for you, and using the same password multiple times to log into all of your sites isn’t the idea of ​​the century. With the numerous online data leaks, and despite the generalization of security options, such as two-factor authentication, regaining control of the management of your passwords has become essential.
To do this, we have selected Bitwarden, a free open source password manager, which offers its followers great freedom of use. The utility can synchronize your data on its secure cloud, but also leaves the freedom to the more adventurous to host the data from Bitwarden themselves.
Another advantage, and not the least, Bitwarden is available on all platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS, and is also available in the form of browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox and Opera. In other words, your passwords will follow you everywhere no matter what device you use.
1. Export your keychains
- On Firefox
To export your passwords in Firefox, you will first need to download the FF Password Exporter application.
Download FF Password Exporter for Windows (Free)
Download FF Password Exporter Portable for Windows (Free)
Download FF Password Exporter for macOS (Free)
Download FF Password Exporter Portable for macOS (Free)
Download FF Password Exporter Portable for Linux (Free)
When the software is opened on your machine, the directory in which your Firefox user profile is located is automatically detected. If you have protected your keychain access with a master password, type it in the Firefox Master Password field.
Then click on Export Passwords, select a backup directory and choose a name for your file. All your passwords are stored in the exported file, in CSV format.
- On Google Chrome
If you are using Google Chrome, the export of passwords stored in the manager integrated into the web browser can be done directly from the software settings.
Open the main menu, and go to Settings. At the top of the window, under the heading People, enter the Passwords menu.
Opposite the Saved passwords heading, click on the three small dots displayed on the right, then click on Export passwords.
An Export Passwords alert window appears, telling you that anyone who can access the file that will be exported will be able to see your passwords.
Click Export Passwords, choose a backup directory and click Save to save the CSV file containing your passwords.
2. Download Bitwarden
Bitwarden is a free open source password manager. It protects your passwords in a secure safe using an encryption system and offers you to synchronize your data online. The main positive point of this solution is that there is an application on all platforms, fixed and mobile. You can enjoy synchronized and up-to-date keychain access on all your devices.
If the desktop application allows you to manage your usernames and passwords on a daily basis, you will have to install the dedicated extension on your browser, as well as the application on your smartphone to take full advantage of the advantages of Bitwarden.
Indeed, they are the ones that will allow you to query your keychain to automatically fill in the connection fields on your browser, but also on your smartphone.
Download Bitwarden for Windows (Free)
Download Bitwarden for macOS (Free)
Download Bitwarden for Linux (Free)
Download Bitwarden for Google Chrome (Free)
Download Bitwarden for Firefox (Free)
Download Bitwarden for Opera (Free)
Download Bitwarden for Android (Free)
Download Bitwarden for iPhone / iPad (Free)
3. Create an account
Meeting on the Bitwarden site, on the page dedicated to creating an account, or directly open the application you just installed.
Enter your e-mail address, your name, and choose a master password. This password will be the only password you will need to remember.
Choose a complex one, which you will easily remember: add punctuation, special characters, numbers, capital letters, etc.
Bitwarden shows in real time the strength of the master password you enter.
Enter the master password again in the dedicated field and optionally enter a hint to help you recover it if you are afraid of forgetting it. Keep in mind that this master password cannot be recovered by any means if you lose it.
4. Import your passwords
Importing your existing passwords into Bitwarden can only be done online. See you on your Bitwarden safe and enter the Tools menu.
Click on Import data, then in the first drop-down menu, select the format of the imported file, in our case, the Chrome (csv) or Firefox (csv) format.
In Select the file to import, click Browse and choose the keychain csv file that you previously exported from Chrome or Firefox.
5. Use the browser extension and mobile app
Once the extension is installed on your browser, click on its icon and log into your Bitwarden account by entering your username and master password. The extension is ready for use.
Then go to a site’s login page from your computer’s web browser. The extension icon should activate and display a number, corresponding to the number of login credentials registered for the site in question. Deploy the extension and click on the identifier. The fields for connecting to your site should automatically fill in.
On mobile, the operation is similar. After logging into the app, Bitwarden can be easily called up to automatically fill in the login fields.
On iOS, login credentials are automatically suggested on the top row of the keyboard. Just select the suggestion to fill in the fields. If no data is suggested, which can be the case in particular when connecting from a mobile application, it will always be possible to launch a search in the Bitwarden keychain.
Operation on Android is similar. You will first have to modify the autofill service on your device. To do this, open Settings, then in System, enter Languages ​​and input then in Advanced settings Input help.
Press Autofill service, select Bitwarden and confirm by pressing OK.
You will then just have to log into the Bitwarden application on your smartphone and then go to a login form to see a notification from Bitwarden offering to automatically fill in your username and password.
6. Replace weak passwords with strong passwords
For obvious security reasons, it is not recommended to use the same password for all your login details. If you are in doubt about the strength of your passwords, you can always let Bitwarden generate a random one for you.
From the extension, click Generator. By default, a password is generated, but it is possible to customize its configuration.
Going down in the options, you can, for example, modify its length, choose the minimum number of letters and special characters, select the type of characters to use, etc. You will then only have to copy the new password to use it to replace an old one.
Bitwarden will then offer to update the password already saved in the keychain.