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Password-Protecting Files by Master Password
If other people have access to your computer and you do not want them to view or use your Passcards, Identities or Safenotes (files), then you should protect these files with Master Password.
We describe password protection as applied to Passcards for brevity.
All commands and displays are the same for Identities and Safenotes.
1. Password Protection by Master Password.
Passcard (or any file) is said to be Password-Protected by Master Password if in order to open and use or edit a passcard you are required to enter a Master Password.
2. View and Change the Password-Protection Status of Identity and Passcard.
To check whether a Passcard (Identity) is password-protected, display it in the Passcard (Identity) Editor:
* If editor toolbar displays Unprotected button with Blue Lock icon then this Passcard is un-protected. Click this button to change protection status to password-protected.
* If editor toolbar displays Protected button with Yellow Lock icon then this passcard is password-protected. Click this button to change protection status to not-protected.
3. Password-Protecting New Files.
You are asked to create new Master Password when you install RoboForm for the first time.
New RoboForm files are automatically protected when they are created, if Master Password has been setup and Password-Protect New Passcard/ Identity/ Safenote option is set in RoboForm -> Options -> Security.
It is strongly recommended that you password-protecting files that contain sensitive data such as user IDs, passwords, credit card numbers and social security number.
4. Master Password Caching.
Once you enter the Master Password, it is cached in memory, so that you do not need to reenter it over and over again.
Master Password remains cached as long as RoboForm remains in memory.
When Master Password is cached in memory, RoboForm Taskbar icon and RoboForm Toolbar icon will turn into a stylized Robot with sunglasses.
When no passwords are cached, the icon is simply Robot without sunglasses.
5. Logoff.
You can force RoboForm to purge cached Master Password from memory by selecting the RoboForm -> Logoff menu item on the toolbar or by clicking the Logoff button in the Editor.
RoboForm automatically logs you off (purges cached Master Password from memory) after 120 mins (2 hours) of inactivity.
You can change this setting in the “RoboForm -> Options -> Security” dialog.
RoboForm Taskbar icon must be present for Auto-Logoff to work.
The Taskbar icon is the agent that auto-clicks the “Logoff” button for you.
6. Change Master Password.
If you decide to change your Master Password, you can do so by opening the Options dialog (select “RoboForm -> Options” in the toolbar) and clicking “Set Master Password” in the “Security” tab.
The “Set Master Password” command will change the password in every passcard and identity, so that you do not have to do it manually.
It also has a radio button option to password-protect or password-unprotect all Passcards and Identities.
Master Password may consist of any characters. It cannot start and end with spaces. The length of Master Password can be anywhere from 4 to 49 characters.
It is recommended that you make your Master Password at least 8 characters long.
It must not be any word or name from the dictionary, so that it cannot be easily guessed using dictionary attack.
7. Dual Master Password (ver 6.4.0 and up).
Dual Master Password allows you to give different levels of access to a passcard, depending on which variant of Master Password is entered.
Dual Master Passwords consists of two parts separated by backslash “\”.
* If only the first part of the password is entered (Example: employee enters “pass”) then user can only Login to passcard but not view or edit passcard.
* If both parts of the Master Password are entered (Example: supervisor enters “pass\word”) then user gains unlimited access to passcard which includes viewing and editing.
* Note that the “long” Master Password (both parts) should contain at least 4 characters.
Dual Password mode is available only in AES, BlowFish and RC6 encryption methods.
To enable it, go to “RoboForm -> Options -> Security” and check “Dual Password” checkbox.
Passcards saved when Dual Password mode is On will have the special interpretation of backslash inside the Master Password, as described above.
How to migrate to Dual Password system:
* In RoboForm -> Options -> Security select AES, Blowfish or RC6 encryption algorithm.
* Check Dual Password checkbox in the same tab.
* Click “Set Master Password” button. Enter old master password and new master password in the form “pass\word”. This will re-protect your passcards with the new master password.
8. Master Password and Other Passwords.
Each Passcard (or any RoboForm file) is password-protected by its own password and this password is used as a key to encrypt and decrypt the passcard.
To reduce the number of passwords that you need to remember to just one, RoboForm forces you to use the same password for all RoboForm files.
However, if you changed the Master Password in the past, or if you have imported Passcards from another computer then you might have Passcards protected by different master passwords.
RoboForm caches two most recently entered password in memory.
9. Encryption Strength
These are encryption key lengths for different encryption methods.
Algorithm Key Length Block Size
AES 128-256 16
Blowfish 256 8
RC6 256 16
3-DES 64 8
1-DES 64 8
AES key length depends on Master Password key length:
* 128 bit for MP less than 32 chars,
* 192 bit for MP from 32 to 47 chars,
* 256 bit for MP 48 chars or longer.
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Printable Manual is available:
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I hope this helps you!
All The Best!
Terry Russell
A+ Computer Service Technician
Reliant Services
1989-2009
http://www.reliantonlineservices.com
http://www.problemswithcomputer.com
http://www.work-at-home-jobs-canada.com
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