But then you're really just making your life a little bit more complicated, so that is a trade-off that anyone can choose to make.įortunately, techniques exist to let us use a password manager and keep the idea of not all eggs in a single basket. This is a legitimate thought but one that can easily be addressed.įirst, you don't have to put everything in a password manager. People often say, “I don't want to put all of my eggs into one basket” when it comes to password managers. Once you have a backup of your vault, you can consider what email address you will use. One idea is to download the file to a USB key, confirm that you can read it, and when you're finished either erase that USB key or put that USB key in a secure place like a physical safe. Understand that an unencrypted file with all of your credentials should be handled with extreme care.

TIP: See our community contributed appendix for extra backup advice.

json format is our recommendation in this scenario. json having a bit more coverage across item types. In this case, choose unencrypted so that you can read your information should you lose access to your account. Bitwarden offers unencrypted and encrypted backup options. The combination of your email and your main Bitwarden password secures your account with end-to-end encryption, so before you change your email you'll want to make a backup of your account. This provides another factor of obscurity if somebody were trying to get into your account.ĭon't worry if you signed up with an email you normally use, you can change that email, but you should backup your account first. For those in the middle, writing it down and putting it in a secure place like a physical safe is a very good idea.īeyond having a strong and unique main password for Bitwarden you can also have a unique email address. Choose what works for you, but don't forget your main Bitwarden password. Other people would never think of writing their main password down because they view it as a security risk. Many people benefit from writing their main password down. That of course means that you need a way to remember your main master password, should you forget it. This means one that is not used anywhere else, one that you can remember, one that you can type - although, once you instrument your password manager with biometrics and PINs, you may not need your main password frequently. Perhaps the most important element of using a password manager is having a strong and unique main password.

Get your main master password right first

Bitwarden usb key