My Password Setup
So, I’m basically making this post so I can share with friends/family. In this post, I will explain what I do for managing passwords, including two-factor authentication (2FA), and give some options for getting 2FA. Before I do that, I will explain how I got to the conclusion on what I am using.
For those that don’t know me, I am not a security expert. You should do your own research (and maybe consult the security experts out there). I could be wrong about some of my conclusions. And more generally, what might work for me might not work for you.
Also, the scope of what I explaining here is only for my personal accounts. My company (and most out there) has an IT policy for work accounts.
You can skip past the Intro, if you don’t need convincing on why reusing passwords is insecure. Also, I put my recommendations right up-front in the Bottom Line section, if you don’t want to read the whole article.
Bottom Line
My bottom line recommendation is to look in to the following combination and see which one works for you: something to manage your password, and something for 2-factor rolling codes (OTPs).
For managing passwords, you can go with a hard-paper notebook (where you write passwords down and you never store them on a computer) or a password management app, such ass KeePass, Bitwarden, or LastPass.
For getting 2-factor rolling codes (OTPs), you can go with a device such as a YubiKey or an app such as Authy, Microsoft Authenticator, or Google Authenticator.
- Password Manager
Pick one from below:- Paper Notebook
with unique entries for each password
– OR –
- Paper Notebook
- – AND –
- One-Time Password (rolling code) Generator
Pick one of:- Hardware Device YubiKey
– OR – - Authenticator App
Pick one of:- Authy
– OR – - Microsoft Authenticator
– OR – - Google Authenticator
- Authy
- Hardware Device YubiKey
Intro
There have been a lot of password leaks lately. I mean, a lot. This multitude of leaks culminated in a meta-dump of everyone’s password. That is, someone compiled many of the previous leaks and put them into one big password dump. As a result, if you’ve been using a password for any amount of time, and if any of the sites you used practiced sub-par security practices, your password is probably available on the Internet.
(You can check here. Just enter an email and it will likely show which of the many breaches your password appeared. Alternatively, you can enter a password here and it will show you if that password was in a data dump. But I’ll save you some time: yes, your email and password are available online.)
Now, one solution is to use unique passwords for each site, and don’t share them between websites. In this case, even if one of your favorite websites leaks their users’ passwords, you only have to worry about someone hacking your account on that site.
Unique static passwords solves most, but not all the ways people can gain access to your account.
Most experts recommend a 2nd factor called one-time-passwords (OTPs) to use in combination with unique static passwords. OTPs changes with time. So, if someone sees you logging into a website, they might get your static password, and they might get your OTP once. But that one-time-password (OTP) is only usable once. They can’t come back to the website and log in as you unless they get the latest OTP.
Remember that there can be a huge profit motive to someone hacking your account. They may want to get your LinkedIn network, your FaceBook contacts, or your financial institution. Taking these two steps can make these attacks much more difficult.
Incidentally, similar recommendations are being provided to US officials participating in elections, albeit with Google’s own hardware product.
The Limitation with Passwords
If you want to create unique passwords for each site, you’ll need to create a lot of passwords. And you probably want to use either a notebook to write them all down, or a password manager to store them (in a secure, encrypted format).
This unique password is a reasonable solution. But, it does suffer from a significant problem: someone could impersonate a website. If, for example, I wanted to go to real cat video site but typed the address in wrong. I mistakenly go to fake cat video site. Fake cat video site has completely impersonated real cat video site. Unless I paid very close attention to the web address, I would not know the difference.
I then type in my password (unwittingly) to fake cat video site. Now, they have my password. They have complete access to my account at real cat video site. They can do whatever they want with that password—including delete my videos, or even replace them all with dog videos.* The problem with passwords is that they are static. Once you’ve handed it out, the cat is out of the bag.
This website imitation is easier than you think online: fake cat video site can pass all traffic through to real cat video site without you knowing. They don’t actually have to copy the information; they can simply forward every request and return every answer. This attack is known as a man-in-the-middle (MITM) attack. Passwords can’t help you with them.
2-Factor Authentication
To mitigate this deficiency, most experts recommend something in addition to the password, a second factor. This is called 2-factor authentication (2FA).
The simplest and most obvious way to add a 2nd factor is to add a rolling code: that is, an extra code that changes with each login attempt. With this rolling code, if you log in to fake cat video site with your password and rolling code, they get access to your real cat video site account only once. They can do some damage, but they do not have permanent access. If they try to log in again, they will need a new rolling code.
There are many ways of getting such a rolling code. One of the most convenient is to use an authenticator app, such as Authy, Microsoft Authenticator, or Google Authenticator. (All of these use a common standard, so you can use any of these with most sites that support a rolling code authentication app.)
These methods uses your phone to create the rolling code (which changes every 30 seconds or so on an app on your phone). For many people, this is a safe enough option. There are flaws with this method, but it really is a very good compromise between convenience and security. If you are going to do nothing else, enable 2-factor authentication using an app.
The problem with app-based authentication is the scenario where you lose physical control over your phone. Or you install an app or download something that compromises your phone. More generally, if someone has access to your phone, you can’t count a security app on your phone to really be a 2nd factor. That 2nd factor app (if it sits on your phone) really becomes more of formality in logging in to an app on your phone.
That said, if you lose your phone and someone has the ability to unlock it, there are much bigger worries than them logging into a specific app or trying to steal a specific account.
The official name of the rolling code is one-time-password (OTP). I use an OTP wherever I can. However, I don’t use an app on my phone to store it. See the next section.
What I Do for OTP
I use a YubiKey for one-time passwords (OTP).
The reason I like the YubiKey is that it allows you to store/generate a one-time password on a hardware device: the small YubiKey itself (which fits on a keychain).
In addition, the YubiKey solves another problem: it’s independently portable. I generally do have it on my keychain, where all my keys are. (Most people are used to keeping their keys secure.) In my case, I duplicate my credentials to two keys. One is a USB-C key (usable on my phone and recent computers) and the others is a regular USB-A key (for backup). So, I have a backup YubiKey that stays at home.
You do need to plug the YubiKey in to your phone or computer to read the codes, but this is done securely: only that single code gets passed through your phone/computer and onto your screen. No one can steal the secret that generates all the codes; it is protected within the hardware of the YubiKey itself.
I also do create backup/recovery codes and print them out. These allow me to log in if I lose both my YubiKeys. (Or if they get corrupt.) I don’t store the backup codes on a computer. They are hard copies and kept in a fire-proof envelope. (Most sites, including FaceBook, allow you to create backup codes.)
What I do for Password Manager
There are many options for software-based password managers. The one I use is KeePass 2. The reason I use it is that it’s free (open source), has options for Windows, Linux, and Android. (I’m not sure about Apple/iOS, but I’d guess there’s a solution there.) And cloud sync is optional. You can store it on a single device, and that device does not necessarily need Internet access. The downside is that if you do want to sync it across devices, it takes some configuration.
Other Options for Password Management
Paper Notebook
While I don’t use a paper notebook—I like the convenience of having a software password manager—they are a good solution. It’s the cheapest (in terms of up-front time and money) solution.
You probably have a notebook lying around your house. If not, take a look at books on Amazon written by Lourdes Welhaven. The only thing to be careful of is that you generate good passwords, which are hard to guess. Your brain is pretty bad at doing random. Here’s a systematic way using dice (if there are no restrictions on password length). (Here are some dice I used for this purpose.**) If there are restrictions on password length, go here or here. Incidentally, password-generation is a place where password-management apps really shine.
No one can hack into your computer and steal your trove of passwords, if they are not on your computer. That said, people hacking a regular Joe’s computer doesn’t seem to be the way passwords are leaking—or at least it isn’t the only way. It is, in fact, the websites we use that seem to be the weak link. Every time a website gets hacked, your password at that website spills on the Internet.
Other Password Management Apps
There are quite a few other options if you want to for a cloud-bases service. I’ve heard good things online about BitWarden and LastPass. I don’t have extensive experience with either of these management apps, but I have come across many good comments about BitWarden.
I did try BitWarden very briefly on my Android device, but I kept KeePass because the Keepass2Android App has an extremely useful feature: you can set it up as a software keyboard in Android. It can then enter your username/password in other apps with a button on the screen.
The SecurityNow Podcast is sponsored by LastPass, and I generally am comfortable with their recommendations; they seem to have a decent vetting process for their sponsors.
Finally, the Have I Been Pwned site I linked in the intro is sponsored by 1Password.
Other Options for OTP
Authenticator Apps are pretty neat. You set it up once by scanning or typing in a long code given by the website you want to use it with (FaceBook, Microsoft, Snapchat, etc). There’s a different code for each.
Then, after setup, it generates a rolling number that’s needed every time you log in. What’s nice is that the apps conform to a standard. So, you can have one app installed for all your different websites.
I have heard Authy. Authy is multi-platform (Windows/iOS/Android) and will sync across platforms. Google Authenticator is equally good, but it doesn’t sync your OTPs across platforms. Similar with Microsoft Authenticator.
One could make the case that OTP’s should be unique to the device they are on, but for most people, the convenience of setting Authy up once is worth the risk. There are those, however, that disagree: using an authenticator app is better than nothing, but a dedicated hardware security key is much better.
Google also has their Titan security key solution, which is hardware-based. I have not done any analysis comparing it to YubiKey. I just know the YubiKey supports many standards and does whatever I need it do do. I started with YubiKey many years ago and never saw a need to switched. I also have a cautious opinion of Google solutions because their repeated exit from markets.
SMS for Two-Factor
I really don’t like this option, and I wish companies would stop providing it. (Especially banks, where this seems to be prevalent.)
Once again, I am no security expert, but experts don’t like it and SMS has failed in the past.
* I am a dog person (too), but people like their cat videos.
** I do not have an affiliate relationship with any of the vendors on this page (at/since the time of writing this post).