# What is a Password Manager?

> A password manager is an application or built-in platform feature that generates, stores, and fills unique credentials so that people do not have to memorize — or reuse — passwords.

- Canonical URL: https://yellowcube.eu/glossary/password-manager/
- Publisher: Yellow Cube
- Language: en
- Contact: hello@yellowcube.eu

## Content

Implementations range from browser- and operating-system-integrated stores to standalone applications that synchronize an encrypted vault across devices. Autofill bound to the correct site or application also resists phishing: the manager will not offer a credential to a look-alike domain.

The security model concentrates value and risk in one place. The vault’s encryption, the strength of its master credential, device posture, recovery options, and the provider’s trustworthiness all determine whether concentration reduces overall risk or creates a single point of catastrophic failure. Organizational use adds questions about sharing, role-based vaults, offboarding, and reporting.

### Key points

- **Primary function:** Generate strong unique passwords or store other secrets, fill them only into the matching service, and synchronize or export under controlled conditions.
- **Protection of the vault:** Use a strong unique master password or biometric unlock, enable multi-factor protection for the manager account itself, keep the software updated, and review recovery and sharing settings.
- **Organizational deployment:** Choose products with appropriate administration, sharing models, event visibility, and offboarding; document which credentials may be stored and how vaults are recovered.
- **Important limitation:** A password manager removes the need to reuse or remember passwords but concentrates risk in the vault and its account. Vault compromise, weak master credentials, unlocked devices, or unsafe export and sharing features can expose every stored credential at once.

### Related terms

[Login credentials](<https://yellowcube.eu/glossary/login-credentials/>) · [Multi-factor authentication (MFA)](<https://yellowcube.eu/glossary/multi-factor-authentication/>) · [Passkey](<https://yellowcube.eu/glossary/passkey/>) · [Credential stuffing](<https://yellowcube.eu/glossary/credential-stuffing/>) · [Secrets management](<https://yellowcube.eu/glossary/secrets-management/>)

### Sources

[UK NCSC, Using password managers](https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/collection/top-tips-for-staying-secure-online/password-managers) · [UK NCSC, Password manager buyers guide](https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/collection/passwords/password-manager-buyers-guide) · [NIST SP 800-63B-4: Authentication and Authenticator Management](https://csrc.nist.gov/pubs/sp/800/63/b/4/final)

## Attribution and scope

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