New user - 3 questions

golfmad

Hello, I've had a quick look through the existing threads but can't see an answer. I wondered if anyone could help.

1. I take it it's not possible to use 1Password for situations like banks which require you to choose randomly from a list of characters in a password?

2. I've had a look at the password recipe but is there any way to choose the specific ingredients in the recipe in order to match requirements from online sites?

3. Is it best to stop the web browser auto-save for passwords for sites stored within the 1Password vault? Otherwise there could be conflict between the two.

Thanks in advance.

hawkmoth

I can answer at least part of you question 3. You can, if you wish, use the iCloud Keychain that is built into OS X 10.9 (Mavericks) in concert with 1Password. I do that myself. But if you are asking about the password saving feature of other browsers, I wouldn't do that. I have those features turned off in the brooders I use and I rely exclusively on 1Password for logging in to sites.

I'm actually of mixed mind about my use of the iCloud Keychain though. If I had a computer that others had physical access to, I wouldn't use it because it does automatically fill in credentials that have been save to it, which would mean anyone who has access to your web browser would have access to your sites, even if they couldn't know the actual password. 1Password doesn't volunteer to log you in to a site. You have to request that with Cmd-\, which a random user is less likely to know.

About question 1, I have read on these forums about sites that require you to enter a randomly chosen set of characters from specific positions in your full password. If that is what you are asking about, 1Password can't handle those. You can use it to make your complicated and unmemorable password, but you will need to manually find it and then enter the requested characters yourself. I myself have been spared such sites, so this is only my memory of what I've read here.

And about number 2, I recall seeing someone ask if they could restrict the particular special characters used to construct a password to a list of only those accepted by the site. That also is not presently possible, but I think (but am not 100% certain) that the developers do have that option on their list to to consider implementing.

danco

Currently for number 1 I have my password also included in the Notes section of the item, but put in groups of five characters so that it is easy to pick out (say) characters 8 and 11. Not good if there is a risk of shoulder-surfing, but anyway I would not want to log in to bank sites if that is a risk.

hawkmoth

Someone suggested that 1Password provide a way to display passwords with character numbers below, just as you've done manually. I don't remember what the response was. if any.

thightower

Last I heard it wasn't possible. But that was before version 4... maybe things have changed ?

Megan

Hi @golfmad,

I can see you've gotten some pretty good advice here, but I'll just pop in with a quick "official" word.

I take it it's not possible to use 1Password for situations like banks which require you to choose randomly from a list of characters in a password?

Unfortunately there is currently no better solution for this than the one @danco suggests: copy your password into the notes section with separation to make it easier to identify specific digits. We've heard about this sort of site before and are exploring alternative solutions for the future though :)

I've had a look at the password recipe but is there any way to choose the specific ingredients in the recipe in order to match requirements from online sites?

Beyond specifying the number of numerals and symbols, there is not yet a way to input more particular ingredients for those picky websites. You can, however, edit a password after it has been generated if you need to ensure a specific character is included.

Is it best to stop the web browser auto-save for passwords for sites stored within the 1Password vault? Otherwise there could be conflict between the two.

1Password and iCloud Keychain don't work together, per se, as there is currently no way to sync with it. If you would like to take advantage of the convenience iCloud Keychain offers in Safari form filling, we recommend that you continue to maintain the master copy of your data in 1Password. When the information you're filling differs from what iCloud Keychain has stored, Safari should prompt you to save it. In this way, you retain the cross-platform, cross-browser security and functionality of 1Password as well as enjoy the convenience of Safari's form filling.

I hope this helps, but if you have further questions, we're here for you!