Did Google just kill the third-party password managers?
Keeping your information like passwords and banking information private and secure is more important today than it ever has been before. Accounts are constantly being hacked, which is why Google already has started enabling two-factor authentication automatically with any newly-created Google account. Today, Google is taking things a step further when it comes to creating and managing your precious passwords.
If you have a Google account, you already have a password manager at your disposal. Created logins are synced across all of your devices thanks to the power of Chrome, and Google has announced even more improvements to the built-in password manager.
The first of which is the ability to easily import passwords from other password manager apps and services like 1Password or LastPass. Deeper integration between Chrome and Android ensures that you can seamlessly log into the sites and apps that you are trying to, without needing to use another app in order to do so.
Chrome already notifies you if a password has been compromised, but the new Password Alerts will alert you the moment that a data breach has been discovered with one of your passwords inside. Finally, and the most exciting new feature, is the ability to fix those potentially compromised passwords “with a simple tap”. If the website or app supports the feature, you’ll see a “change password” prompt from Google Assistant. When selected, Assistant will be right by your side throughout the entire process of changing your password, automatically filling the fields that need to be filled.
Outside of the Assistant integration, these are all features offered by the different password management apps available on the Play Store. The difference here is that everything is integrated with your Google account and with Chrome. The seamless interaction and trusted privacy and security offered by Google over using a third-party client is going to be the key difference when it comes to deciding whether you should switch over to Google’s Password Manager.