Archive for March 12th, 2008

If you’ve been online for very long you’ll know just how easy it is to lose login IDs and passwords if you don’t keep track of them from the beginning. The need to request a password or user ID is not uncommon for online business owners. In the beginning it’s not as difficult to remember the handful of passwords you have, but once you’ve joined newsletter lists, membership sites, etc. keeping track of all those logins and the sites they belong to can be a difficult task. So, how do you keep track of them all?

Depending on the amount and detail of the information you need to store, you can use something as simple as a notebook or Excel spreadsheet or as user friendly as a password storage software program. Below are a few ways to easily keep track of your login information.

Pen & Paper Method
Buy a small notebook and each time you receive or sign up for something that requires a password jot down the website, login and password.

Excel Spreadsheet
Create a blank spreadsheet and name it Logins. Create 3 columns at the top labeled website, Login/User ID, and Password. Fill in the rows with all of your corresponding information. The handy thing about Excel is that you can make the website link clickable, making access to the site easy. It’s recommended that you print a copy of your spreadsheet every so often so you have a backup copy should you lose your pc data.

Let The Websites Cookies Keep Track
Checking a keep me logged in box on a website is one way to save your passwords. However, it’s not recommended due to safety reasons as well as the fact that you can erase cookies and temporary files on your pc and once you do you will not have a record of your passwords when you need to login later. Staying logged in to sites such as forums is a good way to save time, but it’s not recommended as a way to keep track of your login information.

Password Managers
There are various auto fill in managers that can keep track of user IDs, passwords, etc. Doing a search on the net for password managers will give a lot to choose from. Use caution when implementing these types of programs because some of them will input more information than necessary for certain places and your personal information may end up in the wrong hands.

There are many different ways to keep track of all your passwords, email logins, and more and which one you use will depend on what works best for you. Try out different options and then stick with the one you are most comfortable with. No matter which method you use, be sure you are keeping it up-to-date by adding in new logins as soon as you create or receive them. By doing so, the days of “I forgot my password” will become a thing of the past.