VISUAL GUIDE | Audit and updat e your passwords
Perform audit
Log into LastPass, click the LastPass icon and choose Tools > Security Check before clicking the Get Your Score button. Your vault is then opened, your passwords decrypted, and then they’re analysed for weaknesses as well as duplicate entries. Once complete, you’ll be given a full list of any email addresses stored as usernames – leave these all ticked and click Continue to allow LastPass to check they’re not linked with any security breaches.
Review score
You’ll be given a score between 1 and 100, the higher the better. This is a general summary, you still need to check each password individually. First, LastPass also offers to audit your master password – use the provided link to get that rated. Next, click Improve Your Score to see what things you’ll need to do to boost your security score – basically, eliminate weak passwords as well as make sure you’re not using passwords more than once.
Check results
Scroll down your browser window to review the results, or access them through the main LastPass app, which we recommend. All your passwords will be listed in order, with each given a rating and the least secure listed first. You’ll may find a large number of weak and duplicate passwords at the top of the list scoring as low as 1%.
Change and update
Click the Update button next to the first entry in the list, to open the page in your browser. Log in using your existing credentials, then go to Account Settings and look for the option to change your password. You should see a lock icon appear on the right-hand side of the New Password box – click this to reveal a tool to generate a new password. Review any password guidelines provided by the site, then set the password length and choose Advanced Options to include symbols like @, $ and #. Click the Generate Password button and when you’ve found one you like, click Use Password. The password should automatically fill the boxes – click Yes, Use for this Site to confirm the change to LastPass, then update the password on the site.
Move on
Select the next password and update it in the same way, then repeat. If you have a large number to process, don’t force yourself to do it all in one sitting, but do try to get it completed sooner rather than later.
Keep testing
Get in the habit of running the Security Check on a regular basis – say, once a month. It’ll continue to highlight weaknesses, plus alert you to passwords you’ve not changed in a while. It’s a good idea to keep changing passwords on a regular basis.