How to Share Passwords

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“Rarely is anyone thanked for the work they did to prevent the disaster that didn’t happen” – Mikko Hypponen

A few weeks ago I was carpooling with another family to the kids’ camp for the week. I was responsible for dropping the kids off in the morning. When I got all four kids there on the first day, the counselors asked me for a password that would need to be given at pickup time.

I set the password and then immediately communicated it to the other family so they could successfully pickup all the kids. It reminded me that we think of passwords as secret, when in fact they are private – we just want only trusted individuals to know at the right time.

So in this episode of the How to Share podcast, I talk with banker, adventurer and my friend, Jill Jones, about the complexities of password sharing. We emphasize the importance of trusted access and the evolving methods of password management. We explore personal experiences, the impact of technology on security practices, and provide practical tips for navigating password storage and sharing in both personal and professional contexts.

Note: Passwords are a small piece of the overall planning that needs to happen in a crisis. The amazingly thoughtful and prepared Edward Ortiz of the Thoughts about Leadership, history, and more blog has a great post about What if The Unthinkable Happens at Home to help plan for household crisis.

Takeaways

  • Passwords are often thought of as secrets, but they are actually private.
  • It’s essential to have trusted individuals who can access passwords when needed.
  • Old methods of password storage, like writing them down, are becoming obsolete.
  • Digital vaults can provide a secure way to store important documents and passwords.
  • Two-factor authentication adds an extra layer of security but can complicate access.
  • Banking experiences offer valuable lessons in password security and fraud prevention.
  • Regularly changing passwords can lead to reliance on easily guessable information.
  • Technology is changing how we manage and share passwords.
  • Planning for unexpected events, like sudden death, is crucial for password access.
  • Having a system in place for sharing passwords is necessary for security.

Here’s a preview of some of the pros and cons of common password practices:

Here are some ways you can listen and watch this informative episode:

Please listen, watch, provide feedback and subscribe.

How to Share Our Luck with Gil Gillenwater – How To Share

In this enlightening conversation, Gil Gillenwater is with host Wynne Leon and shares his experiences and insights from over 35 years of philanthropic work along the US-Mexico border. He discusses his book, 'Hope on the Border,' which highlights the transformative power of education and community service. Gil emphasizes the importance of enlightened self-interest over traditional charity, advocating for a model that empowers individuals and fosters dignity. He explores the duality of poverty, the need for sustainable opportunities, and the joy found in serving others, ultimately presenting a vision for a more connected and compassionate world.TakeawaysEducation is the key to breaking the cycle of poverty.Enlightened self-interest can lead to personal and communal growth.Charity should not be viewed as a sacrifice but as a mutual benefit.Volunteering provides a sense of purpose and fulfillment.Welfare can disempower individuals and communities.Community service fosters connections and shared humanity.The disparity in wealth is a significant issue that needs addressing.Experiencing poverty firsthand can change perspectives.Creating opportunities in one's home country can reduce migration.The joy of service is a pathway to personal happiness.Links for this episode:How to Share homeHope on the Border at AmazonGil's organization: Rancho FelizGil Gillenwater on FacebookWynne’s book about her beloved father: Finding My Father’s Faith; Blog: https://wynneleon.com/; Substack: https://wynneleon930758.substack.com/
  1. How to Share Our Luck with Gil Gillenwater
  2. How to Share 1970's Chicago with Doug. E. Jones
  3. How to Share Feedback with Dr. Vicki Atkinson
  4. How to Share the Next Generation with Mari Sarkisian Wyatt
  5. How to Share Impactfully with Social Media Friends with Amy Weinland Daughters

Links for this Episode:

Jill Jones on LinkedIn

How to Share Passwords transcript

(featured photo from Pexels)

(Quote comes from Rarely Is Anyone Thanked – TheEnlightenedMind622 )

59 thoughts on “How to Share Passwords”

  1. Love this conversation with Jill. Thank you, Wynne! Terrific, practical advice and a perfect tie in to Edward’s helpful post! Passwords, privacy, preparedness…🥰

    Liked by 1 person

  5. That quote is new to me, but speak to me! It’s so true. Thanks for sharing!

    In this day and age, it takes effort to maintain some level of privacy. These are all amazing tips! I would add, it can be advantageous to use open source software like Bitwarden (password manager) and VeraCrypt (digital vault) because a huge community actively monitors the code for weaknesses. If you have a password manager, have a different password for every account so if one account is compromised, it’s the only one. Also, rather than a short password based on personal data or an impossible to remember string of characters, generate a few words, e.g., “Ladle-Freebee4-Quote-Gloating-Confidant”. It’s lengthy, varied, and highly secure, but also easier to remember.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Ah, that’s not a very fun reminder, is it, Brad? But important.

      The particulars are always changing – the password manager I’ve used is 1password and it works great to create personal and professional password storage and manage multi-factor authentication.

      Esoterica’s comment above includes ones that she’s had good experience with. I’d say generally that there are many good ones – the factors I’ve used to choose are price (and is it per user or per vault), company history of stability and security, and feature set (like MFA and ability to store notes).

      I’d also add that low-tech works too (depending on requirements). Having a USB drive with files and passwords works too as long as it’s kept up-to-date and in a secure location.

      Hope that helps!

      Liked by 1 person

  10. My wife and I use a password app that allows us to share across all of our digital platforms, but occasionally I wonder what would happen if something happened to one us or both of us. Are we ready, prepared, to our kids know what to do? So many things to think of that I am not ready to think of, but maybe I should. Looking forward to this… thank you.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I’d say that you all are well ahead of the game then. You’re right – it’s not fun to think of but probably good to put on the list. Thanks for tuning in, Clay!

      Like

  11. You got me thinking about how we share information. You’re right, passwords are not a secret, just private. We share wifi passwords with our family. It reminds me of the whisper down the lane game and how the information gets passed around from one person to another. I mention wifi passwords, because when we went away recently I had to plug in the password again. I asked my wife and son for the password and got two different responses. Ha, ha, of course, I eventually got it, but it made me laugh.

    Liked by 1 person

  13. This is such a critical topic, especially since so many important aspects of our lives require passwords. Gone are the days of using the same password for multiple accounts. I have to admit I still use the phone book method.

    On a similar topic, when my parents passed, they had all of their wishes spelled out in writing. That helped my brothers and me a lot. People tend to avoid talking about some of those topics because we don’t want to think about them. On the other hand, if you don’t have those difficult discussions ahead of time and a sudden death occurs, you don’t want to be guessing about what to do at a time when you’re so vulnerable.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I couldn’t agree more about the planning. You said it perfectly that you don’t want to be guessing at a time when you’re vulnerable! Here’s to making it easy for our loved ones!

      Liked by 1 person

  15. Hi Wynne. This one hit a little close to home because I recently had a major hack. I was super foolish and clicked on a link in an email from someone I knew, and the bad guys were halfway in. But then I made mistake #2 when my computer screen went dark and I could see a cursor moving around! Yikes! When a Windows screen popped up looking for my pin, I gave it because I wanted the black screen to go away. A few days later, they used my email list to send out the very thing that I had first clicked on. That’s when I took my computer in to a computer guy. In hindsight, I was relieved when I realized that Google always asks to store my passwords, and I have always said no. Thank God, or it might have been worse. I canceled my credit card etc. so nothing was taken. Out of precaution, I used my husband’s computer for financial sites. It was a jarring experience. I enjoyed your conversation.

    Liked by 1 person

  16. Wow, such an important topic. My sister’s husband passed away suddenly a few years ago and they were not prepared. She didn’t know any of his passwords and of course lost precious photos on his phone and important information on his computer. So that was a lesson we all learned from her experience. We’re going to listen to your podcast together and work on sharing our passwords with each other. Thanks Wynne, I’ve missed you, seems like forever since we exchanged comments. I’ve been traveling a lot this summer as my son got married in Portugal, a new grandchild was born in New York and several relatives have been rotating in and out of the house. I’ve missed our wonderful community. Hugs, C

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Cheryl!! What an incredible summer you are having – that sounds wonderful! It’s fun to hear from you although I can completely understand why those huge occasions would command your attention!

      I’m sorry to hear that your sister lost that content. I know there is no good way to lose a loved one but how unfortunate to have to wrestle with that stuff too. I hope this podcast is helpful! Thank you so much for tuning in, my friend! Sending you lots of love!

      Like

  18. I’m actually listening to the podcast now. I used to do the same thing Jill used to do, adding 01, 02, etc., to old passwords, because it’s such a pain to keep changing them. I was glad when the Army moved to tokens, using the identification card to log in to computer systems, websites, etc. Thank you so much for mentioning my post, my friend.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. The incremental passwords – you gotta love them. They solve that pain point of frequent password changes. Tokens are a good way to go. Thanks for talking about all we need to consider in a crisis – this is just a small part!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. You’re welcome, my friend. While listening today, I noticed that I might be able to write a review on the Apple Podcast. I usually listen to them on my iPhone but today I was using my desktop. Not sure if it’s going to help with the algorithms, but I’m going to write one. I’m enjoying them very much.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Thank you so much for that, Edward! I so appreciate that you are enjoying them — that means a lot to me. And the review would be helpful. I’m grateful, my friend!

        Like

  19. We generally don’t like to think about things suddenly changing or death but in reality it’s so important to plan for these things ahead. None of us know what’s going to happen tomorrow. Will definitely check out the preview!

    Liked by 1 person

  20. food for thought and good advice. I’ve been working on this, as I organize things for my grown daughters and want to have my things in place for them. when my mother passed away, I was left with a pile of papers that I had to hunt for. it was all a mess, and a huge mystery to put it mildly. forensic accounting and code cracking does not even begin to describe the process, so I really understand the importance of this.

    Liked by 1 person

  21. Passwords are a frustrating part of this life experience and becoming more so with the multiple layers of authentication – important though and anything we can do to lessen the stress, the better! Thank you for the information.

    Liked by 1 person

  22. I love how you both turned a topic as seemingly mundane as passwords and made it engaging, funny and informative – and threw in a mountain climbing anecdote in it too!

    Cybersecurity and online banking are the new areas of crime these days – and it’s so important to have tight security measures in place to protect your hard work and legacy. Also good to think about how to protect yourself while ensuring your closest trusted loved ones can access your info if you were to unexpectedly croak like that poor IT Director!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I love your comments, Ab. Yes, too bad for that IT director. He died while cleaning his bathroom without any ventilation. What a way to go. Makes me not want to clean my bathroom. 🙂

      Thank you for listening. I’m glad we made it engaging. Not often you can mix climbing with passwords but we gave it a go… 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  23. “Passwords are often thought of as secrets, but they are actually private.” That one line was eye-opening to me. Really great topic – thank you for enlightening me, as always – V

    Liked by 1 person

  24. Passwords are private, not secret… love this. Yes, judicial sharing is good, and if the trust is broken, we can always change the password!

    Liked by 2 people

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