Stand Alone app vs. Cloud subscription

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JoinTheCollective
JoinTheCollective
Community Member
edited June 2023 in Families

I have used the stand-alone version of 1Password through version 7. My wife and I have five Mac iOS and OS devices between us. Our internet is not reliable and I do not completely trust the cloud (my personal information was compromised in a major breach through what should have been a VERY secure organization), so I am reluctant to have my passwords depend on an internet cloud connection and was happy with the resident, stand-alone version of 1Password. I have subscribed to 1Password, although now I'm having second thoughts because my wife and I do not want to merge password files; our internet connection is unreliable; and frankly the family pricing is excessive.

So, I would prefer to stay with the 1Password "family". I like the interface and it has been reliable (stand-alone version). Can I continue to use 1Password as a stand-alone in the future (version 8, then 9 . . .) resident on my (and my wife's) computer app, or must I subscribe as a family to allow me to have 1Password continue to be our password manager, with its dependence (and frankly vulnerability) on the internet?


1Password Version: 7
Extension Version: 7.9.10
OS Version: mac OS 13.4
Browser:_ Safari or Firefox

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  • Hi @JoinTheCollective,

    We will be happy to help you with this - to avoid sharing your account information here, can you send us an email to support+forum@agilebits.com from your account's registered email address so we can continue the conversation there.

    After you have sent the email, please feel free to post the ticket number you received so we can locate your message and connect it with this forum discussion.

  • JoinTheCollective
    JoinTheCollective
    Community Member
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    The Support ID is #WBD-64339-971

  • JoinTheCollective
    JoinTheCollective
    Community Member
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    I would expect the general subject of Stand Alone vs. Cloud Subscription would be of interest to the community. Will you be posting a general response to the subject?

  • Ben
    Ben
    edited June 2023
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    Hi @JoinTheCollective,

    Sure; as a general response:

    Our internet is not reliable

    The 1Password apps cache your data for offline access. An "always on" connection is not required to use 1Password. You'll need to be online for changes you make to sync to other devices, but beyond that the apps can happily work without internet access. We've recently introduced an offline indicator, which can help inform you when changes are not being synced due to a lack of connectivity.

    That has pretty much always been the case with 1Password. We've never officially supported an offline sync between multiple Macs, for example. Syncing between computers required an internet connection and a 3rd party service like iCloud or Dropbox. The difference now is that instead of relying on a 3rd party, 1Password is handling that syncing. This allows us to provide an easier to use service that is custom tailored to 1Password, rather than having to configure a separate account and service to hold your encrypted data.

    and I do not completely trust the cloud (my personal information was compromised in a major breach through what should have been a VERY secure organization)

    All of the data you store in 1Password is encrypted with keys only you have before it is synced to 1Password.com. This is called "end-to-end" encryption. You can learn more about our security model, here:

    About the 1Password security model

    my wife and I do not want to merge password files

    It isn't necessary to merge your data. You can each have your own account, with your own Personal/Private vault, within 1Password Families.

    Add and remove family members

    If there is data that you want to share, you can move those items from your respective Personal/Private vaults to a shared vault:

    Share passwords with your family

    Can I continue to use 1Password as a stand-alone in the future (version 8, then 9 . . .) resident on my (and my wife's) computer app, or must I subscribe as a family to allow me to have 1Password continue to be our password manager, with its dependence (and frankly vulnerability) on the internet?

    We're all in on 1Password membership. Standalone is not part of current offerings, and will not be part of future offerings. That said, I hope what I've outlined above helps allay the concerns you have.

    The Support ID is #WBD-64339-971

    Thanks! I see we've received your message and we can offer personalized support there. We'll be in touch with further details ASAP.

    Ben

    ref: WBD-64339-971

  • JoinTheCollective
    JoinTheCollective
    Community Member
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    Thank you, Ben. That is a good response and I appreciate it. I am likely to subscribe for my family.

    In a related matter, I do not begrudge businesses that need to have a profit margin, but the shift in business model from stand-alone to subscription costs us consumers a lot of money relative to the stand-alone option now abandoned and you gave us no choice. I would expect that more support can be afforded now and hope that you will create more value as a result of us paying more. Please note that you (and other businesses that have shifted to subscriptions) have created "bait and switch" resentment resulting from selling a successful stand-alone product, creating a dependence on that product and then shifting to a more profitable subscription model, leaving the consumer with a stark choice - leave and start over with a competitor, or pay the price. So, the price of the subscription will weigh on my ultimate decision.

    Thank you for posting my rant.

  • @JoinTheCollective

    Thank you for the additional feedback, it's always great to have an open discussion regarding these issues!

    When using a 1Password membership, one of the great things about a 1Password it, is that upgrades for all the 1Password apps are included- you never have to worry about buying more licenses. You can subscribe annually, which is more affordable than the monthly option, or pay for your subscription using a gift card to cover several years simultaneously.

    Your 1Password membership provides a regular revenue stream that allows us to keep building 1Password and protecting your privacy. As a security company, we want you to keep software and hardware up to date. Older versions of operating systems, hardware, or security software will become incompatible over time with vulnerabilities that didn't exist when they were current.

This discussion has been closed.