Passwords - Do you know how to securely share your passwords?

The best way to protect your passwords is to never share them. However, in some cases, sharing passwords may be necessary. In these situations, it is essential to follow a strict password sharing procedure to ensure the security of sensitive information. The key to this procedure is having a powerful password manager to be able to share passwords securely and efficiently.

Learn more about the best password managers.

Do the following, in this order, to securely share passwords:

1. Search for the password in a password manager - If you read the rule above, then you have set up a company-wide password manager. Users should be able to search for the passwords they need in the manager, directly. This method is considered ultra secure.
2. Share the password via a password manager - Good password managers have one-time password sharing capabilities, e.g. generating a link to the record in the password manager, which can be shared with people who do not have access to the password manager. This method is considered super secure and efficient.
3. Share the password via a secure message service such as onetimesecret.com - If you don't have a password manager, you can use free websites that generate links with a message that self-destructs, but this method is considered much less secure. We advise using different mediums to share the password, e.g. username via a Teams message, password via onetimesecret.com
4. Share the password via SMS/text - If all previous options fail, we try sharing the password via text. However, this method is much less secure and should only be used as a last resort, if used at all, due to the password being saved forever in an SMS. We advise using different mediums to share the password, e.g. username via a Teams message, password via SMS. The password should be changed after it's all done.

By having a powerful password manager as the foundation of our password sharing procedure, we ensure that our sensitive information is secure and protected against potential data breaches or security threats. While it is always best to avoid sharing passwords, in situations where it is necessary, this password sharing procedure ensures that the sharing is done securely and efficiently.