I use RoboForm on a daily basis and it simplifies my online life a great deal. When I wrote this article, I had over 280 RoboForm passcards, which store and protect my logins. These passcards include information like usernames, passwords, pin numbers and answers to security questions for various websites that my wife and I visit. I also have my name, address, phone numbers, credit card info and much more stored with RoboForm to quickly and easily fill online forms.

Security

First of all, any information that you save with RoboForm is protected with a Master Password. Yes, this means that you will have to remember one password – but it also means that people around your computer won’t be able to access any of your online accounts unless they know this Master Password. All of the information that is stored with RoboForm is also encrypted. Anyone who got their hands on your actual passcard files would still need your Master Password to decrypt them.

Since RoboForm remembers and fills all of your passwords for you, you won’t have to worry about forgetting any of them. This allows you to create a different password for each online account without having to worry about forgetting any of them. If you’re currently using the same password for everything that you do, you should definitely check out my basic password tips. In case you don’t want the hassle of thinking up a new password for each website, RoboForm is able to randomly generate very strong passwords for you. An example of a generated password might look like this: NJ@&z47lpXZCds7VKvXI, but as you can see in the picture below – these generated passwords are also easy to customize.

One of the many risks to your security is a type of software that is known as a keylogger. A keystroke logger is a program that can record anything that you type on your keyboard. This log is then covertly sent out to the person who created or installed the keylogger which allows them to use your passwords, credit card numbers and so on. Most of the time, these keyloggers will look like an installation for a useful piece of software. You (or your family) could end up downloading and installing the keystroke logger; thinking that it was something else. On a side note, it is always a good idea to protect yourself from such downloads with a good internet security suite.

As I mentioned above, RoboForm will generate random passwords for you. When you randomly generate your password and drag it into the password field, your information will remain invisible to a keystroke logger. RoboForm also offers protection by providing a Virtual Keyboard for you to click in your Master Password so that keyloggers cannot capture it. Your other information (username, password, etc.) used to access your accounts will be filled with one simple click of the mouse. So, since you aren’t typing any of that information, it won’t be recorded either.

Phishing is yet another common threat to internet users today. Phishing is basically an electronic communication from someone that pretends to be a well known legitimate business. Let’s say that I send you an official looking email saying that there is a problem with your bank account. I continue to write that all you have to do to fix this “bank error” is to click the link that I provided in the email and then login to your account. That link then takes you to a website that appears to be your bank’s website but if you were to look at the actual website address (or URL) – you would see that it’s just a fake version of your bank’s homepage. For example you might see www.bankonamerica.com rather than www.bankofamerica.com in the address bar. The hope of the criminal that sent you this email is that you won’t notice the difference and you’ll end up submitting your username, password and other account information to this fake website. Then the bad guy uses that information to get at your money, steal your identity or do anything else that those evil lawbreaker types like to do.

RoboForm is quite an effective tool that prevents these phishing scams from being successful. RoboForm exposes these illegal practices by securely storing the correct URL (or internet address) along with your login information. RoboForm will only display passcards for URLs that match the internet address that is stored with your login information. If you happen to visit a fake website – you won’t be able to accidentally login because there won’t be any passcards that correspond with that fake URL.

RoboForm also keeps users alert by reminding them to be vigilant when it comes to protecting their personal information. Whenever a user is going to automatically fill credit card, social security, or any other important information – RoboForm will display a warning box stating that the web site is asking for sensitive information. This serves as a wake-up call in case you get too accustomed to automatically filling any form that comes along.

How it all looks and works

I suggest that you opt to use RoboForm’s toolbar inside your browser (which should be Firefox) because their toolbar has everything you need and is very easy to use. The image below is an example of how the toolbar looked at the time that I wrote this article.

The ‘RoboForm’ button (on the left side of the toolbar) gives you access to everything RoboForm has to offer. In the drop down menu you can view and make changes to your logins, identities, profiles, tools, options and so on.

The search field (to the right of the RoboForm button) allows you to search through all of your logins. If you have a Gmail account and a RoboForm passcard that contains your login information, you could simply type “gmail” (or whatever you named the passcard) in the search field and press the enter key to have RoboForm automatically go to the Gmail website and enter your login information for you.

The ‘Logins’ button (to the right of the search field) lists all of the passcards stored with RoboForm. From the drop down menu you’re able to choose a specific login, create a new login, edit existing logins, print a list of your logins or select one of your recently used logins.

To the right of the ‘Logins’ button will be a ‘Passcard’ button which contains all of the passcards matching the specific URL (or internet address) that you’re visiting. If you were sitting at Gmail’s login page, you would see your default Gmail passcard. If you have 5 different Gmail accounts, you would need to hover over this button for a second to select the specific account that you would like to access.

If you’re storing your personal information with RoboForm to easily fill checkout pages and other lengthy forms, then you will see ‘Information’ buttons to the right of your Passcard button. These buttons will fill forms with information like your name, address, phone numbers, bank accounts, credit cards, business information and even custom fields.

The ‘Save’ button is located to the right of the ‘Passcard’ or ‘Information’ buttons. This button allows you to save new logins, forms or bookmarks.

Next is the ‘Generate’ button and it quickly and easily creates secure passwords for new accounts. Hovering over this button lets you customize your options for password generation. You can then fill the password field with this generated password by pressing the fill button on the drop down menu or by dragging the password into the password field. You can also copy the generated password to be pasted elsewhere.

Final Ramblings

Even though I don’t get excited about things too often, I love this software! All I have to do is remember my Master Password, and RoboForm remembers everything else. I am thrilled that the functionality of RoboForm allows me to easily use different passwords for every online account that I maintain. I always try to keep my passwords 20 characters long with as many different types of characters as possible. If a particular website only allows letters and numbers or has a maximum of 10 or so characters, it is very easy to change the options prior to generating the password. I was so tired of continuously typing my full name, address and phone number for various sign-ups and other forms. Now, shopping cart checkouts and long registration forms only take seconds to complete. All I have to do is click on my RoboForm Identity or Passcard and RoboForm completes the entire form. If you spend a lot of time on the internet, I strongly suggest you that you look into purchasing this software.

Download RoboForm for free and for the first thirty days, you will be able to store as many Passcards and Identities as you want. After this trial period, RoboForm will always continue to work – only the amount of information that you can store will be reduced. I’m sure that once you have used RoboForm for a few days, you will see how much time it can save you. More importantly, I hope that you understand how much more secure your online activities will be while using RoboForm.

In the past, I have tried a couple of small town banks and some of the hugest financial institutions. So far, the best financial services company that I’ve ever had the pleasure to be a member of is USAA. All of my income goes to USAA first and then I transfer my money out to wherever I may need it. USAA is convenient for transfers because they allow you to link numerous external accounts to your USAA checking/saving account. Once you setup a transfer, USAA is very quick with processing everything. When I make a transfer from an external account into my USAA account, they even front me the incoming money while the transaction is processing. This way, I can instantaneously have those funds available to me in case I really need then. Some banks (like WaMu) make you wait a few days before they even think about actually processing the transfer which then takes another couple of days. USAA won me over with their courtesy, trust and common sense when it comes to taking care of their customers. There aren’t a bunch of ‘gotta have it’ or ‘gee whiz’ features but they provide a professional and honest service. Other than a checking account, I rely on USAA for my auto insurance as well as term & universal life insurance policies for my wife and I.

In case you’re wondering, USAA stands for United Services Automobile Association. In order to be a member, you’ll need to be one of the following:

Getting to know USAA

USAA has been around since 1922 and was started by some twenty-five Army officers. With honesty, rather than slimy car salesmanship, USAA has provided financial security to over 6 million (and growing) members. I might also mention that USAA isn’t a publicly traded company; which means that stockholders aren’t calling the shots – instead, the company prefers to listen to their customers. USAA doesn’t have branches everywhere; the company conducts its business through the internet, phones and mail. Beginning in 1922 USAA basically operated through mailings; late in the 1960’s they adopted the use of phones but didn’t get a toll-free number until 1978. Considering that toll free numbers were available in 1967, I’m guessing that USAA was a little slow adapting to change or there just wasn’t a lot of need for phone based services. USAA started operating on the Internet in 1999 and have stayed in touch with technological changes ever since. When I wrote this article, their website was pretty slick. The pages load fast and I can manage every type of account that I have very easily once I login. USAA keeps an archive of your bank statements and other documents (like insurance policies) so that you can look at or print them in a matter of minutes. I can also communicate with USAA’s customer service through speedy email messages that are built in to their site.

USAA runs on integrity; employees don’t receive any commission for selling someone a bunch of different insurance policies that they don’t really need. USAA currently offers incredibly competitive checking, savings, loans, certificates of deposit, credit cards, mortgages, auto insurance, home & property insurance, life insurance, numerous investing options, and much more. USAA also provides a free financial assessment so that you can see where you need to improve your financial situation. The financial assessment is a good tool for anyone but it is especially important for any young military member who just left their parent’s house for the first time. If you are eligible to be a USAA member and are trying to reach a decision on whether you should choose USAA or not, I urge you to read this short article.

Subscriber’s Account

This is just icing on the cake and shouldn’t be a major consideration when deciding to join USAA. When you pay $X amount of money to USAA for some type of insurance policy, your money sits in an account. This account is your Subscriber Savings Account (SSA) and it’s something that you’ll never be able to see or mess with. You can pretty much assume that you will never see your insurance premiums again, however, every once in a while something magical happens. If USAA had an awesome year – one where the company’s investments did great and they didn’t have to cover a lot of member accidents or other catastrophic losses – then USAA may choose to give you some of your premium money back. SSA Distributions are never guaranteed, but I have received them on a fairly regular basis.

Subscriber’s Accounts are a unique feature of USAA membership. As a reciprocal insurer, USAA holds a portion of its capital in each member’s name in a Subscriber’s Account. The association may, at the discretion of the USAA Board of Directors, use these funds to support USAA’s mission and goals.

Subscriber’s Accounts play an important role in our financial structure by providing capital to satisfy legal and regulatory requirements, support current and future operations, and pay large unexpected losses, such as claims from catastrophes.

Each year, the USAA Board of Directors examines whether USAA’s capital exceeds its current and projected needs and requirements. As circumstances permit, the board may authorize a distribution from each member’s Subscriber’s Account. If the board authorizes a distribution, a member can choose to receive the Subscriber’s Account distribution by direct deposit, apply the Subscriber’s Account amount to a USAA auto and property insurance bill or receive a check.

Final Ramblings

If you qualify to be a member – definitely take advantage of USAA’s professional services. USAA strives to be the provider of choice for the military community. They have succeeded in that mission with me; I’d like for everyone to be able to experience the benefits of being a member of USAA.