Free Solutions: Password Management

Passwords are a scourge of modern computing. You have one set of them at work: a network password, an e-mail password, and perhaps a few more. Then there's your home set: one for your Internet service provider connection, one for your personal e-mail, and several user name/password combos for various Web site accounts (Amazon.com, Yahoo ... even your account at Cheese.com). Perhaps you have multiple e-mail accounts, each with its own password.

The situation is clearly out of control. Using the same password for every account is no solution. Should an e-thief somehow grab the magic sequence, all your online activities are laid bare. What then?

Software to the rescue! Submitted here for your approval (and use) is a free password-management program called Whisper 32. The program makes storing and securing passwords a cinch. The only password you'll have to remember is the one you assign to your password-tracking file. You can even have the program generate new passwords for you, so you can stop relying on your dog's name or your wedding anniversary. Whisper 32 is free and simple, and it just plain gets the job done.

Each record in Whisper 32 consists of a service name, a user name, a password, and a memo area for URLs and notes about the account. You can set expiration dates for password entries. The program can take you directly to a password-protected site after you look up your password. And you can set it to run in your system tray, near the clock, so that your passwords are always at your immediate disposal.