1Password just made password sharing a lot safer

We’ve all done it; we’ve all shared passwords with friends and family by emailing or texting them against our better judgment. You’ve probably shared your Netflix password with quite a few family members and friends this way. But you might also have shared more sensitive login information. In theory, nobody else should see those emails or chats. And you could always change the shared password. But email accounts and devices get hacked all the time. And someone searching for username and password combinations might find them.

That’s where 1Password’s new password sharing feature comes in handy. And it’s a feature you should start using right away.

Why apps like 1Password are essential

Before we explain the new password sharing feature, we’ll remind you what 1Password is and why it’s important to know what these apps do.

1Password is a password manager app that lets you use a single password to protect all of your other passwords. Password managers let you create unique username/password combinations for each online service and app without having to remember any login details. You only need the password that unlocks your 1Password vault.

Many people recycle the same username/password combination for multiple accounts. They might use the same login for email, Facebook, Netflix, and banking. When hackers breach one online account, they can try the same combination elsewhere, hoping the victim is recycling logins.

Password manager apps offer users the tools needed to prevent a breach from impacting all your properties. Say someone hacks your Netflix account. Because you used a unique password, they won’t be able to reuse the same combo to get into all your other accounts.

1Password isn’t the only password manager apps out there. It’s up to you to choose one. But the company has come up with a few exciting features, including the new password sharing tool below.

Password sharing done right

A few days ago, 1Password announced a partnership with Fastmail that lets you add a unique email address to every online account. That’s another brilliant online security feature you should be aware of — read more about it at this link. Then 1Password followed up with the new password sharing service seen in the video above.

You can use 1Password to share securely anything you might have stored in it. It might be the Netflix login, your Wi-Fi password, or secure notes that you might want to send to significant others. 1Password’s “password secure sharing tool” (PSST) lets you create a unique link that expires in a predetermined amount of time. You can also set it up so only certain people can view the link.

If anybody is allowed to see it, then the link will load in the browser, where they’ll be able to grab the data. If only specific recipients are permitted, they’ll have to enter their email first and submit a one-time code. And if the recipients are 1Password users themselves, then they’ll be able to add the login data to their accounts.

Also important is that the information you share is a copy of the data at the moment you press the share button. If you make changes after sharing the link, the recipient won’t see them. They’ll only get what you shared.

Finally, an Activity Log will let you see more detailed information about the people who accessed shared items. The feature will come in handy to admins more than personal 1Password users. But it’s another layer of security for the password sharing feature.

You’ll need a 1Password subscription to share passwords via PSST. But the recipients do not need 1Password accounts to get the data.