Question 1

Why are strong passwords important?

Accepted Answer

Strong passwords are your first line of defense against unauthorized access to your online accounts. Weak or reused passwords can be easily guessed or cracked, leading to identity theft, financial loss, and compromised personal information. A unique, complex password for each account significantly reduces this risk.

Question 2

How does PassGenius generate passwords?

Accepted Answer

PassGenius uses your browser's built-in cryptographic pseudo-random number generator (CSPRNG) to create passwords. This ensures that the randomness is of high quality. You can customize the length and character sets (uppercase, lowercase, numbers, symbols) to meet your specific security requirements or website criteria.

Question 3

Is PassGenius secure? Are my generated passwords stored?

Accepted Answer

Yes, PassGenius is designed with security in mind. All password generation happens entirely on your computer (client-side) within your browser. PassGenius does NOT store, transmit, or have any access to the passwords you create. Once you close the browser tab or navigate away, the generated password is gone unless you've copied it.

Question 4

What makes a password 'strong'?

Accepted Answer

A strong password typically has several characteristics: Length (the longer, the better – aim for at least 12-16 characters), Complexity (a mix of uppercase letters, lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols), Uniqueness (never reuse passwords across different accounts), and Randomness (avoiding dictionary words or predictable patterns). You can learn more on our homepage.

Question 5

How often should I change my passwords?

Accepted Answer

Traditional advice was to change passwords frequently. However, current best practices emphasize creating very strong, unique passwords for each account and only changing them if you suspect a compromise or if a service you use has reported a data breach. Using a password manager can help you manage many unique, strong passwords.

Question 6

What are password managers, and should I use one?

Accepted Answer

Password managers are tools that create, store, and manage your passwords in an encrypted vault. They are highly recommended because they allow you to use long, complex, and unique passwords for all your accounts without needing to memorize them. Popular options include Bitwarden, 1Password, and LastPass. PassGenius can help you generate strong passwords to store in your password manager.

Question 7

Can I use PassGenius for all my accounts?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely! PassGenius is ideal for generating strong, unique passwords for any online account, whether it's email, social media, banking, or any other service. The customization options allow you to meet the specific password requirements of different websites.

Question 8

What do 'Exclude Similar' and 'Exclude Ambiguous' options mean?

Accepted Answer

'Exclude Similar' removes characters that can be easily confused (like 'I', 'l', '1', 'O', '0'). 'Exclude Ambiguous' removes characters that might be hard to read or type, or could cause issues in some systems (like '{ } [ ] ( ) / \ ' " ` ~ , ; : . < >'). Using these options can improve password readability and reduce typing errors.