Over the last decade, the gig economy boom has allowed professionals worldwide to switch to freelancing and build a network of international clients.&nbsp;
According to Upwork, 1 in 3 US workers engaged in freelance work during 2020. Some of the most successful freelancers earn hundreds of thousands of dollars per year through platforms like Upwork, Freelancer, and Toptal.
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Does your company hire freelancers? How do you <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/should-i-share-data-with-freelancers">share passwords with freelancers</a>? TeamPassword is an affordable password management solution for small businesses, startups, and agencies to share credentials securely with team members and freelancers. <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> today.
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<h2>10 Successful Freelancers</h2>
Here are ten successful freelancers and what they do. These freelancers have earned their place as experts in their given field with excellent track records&mdash;many have worked with the biggest companies in the world!
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<h3>1. Scott Luscombe - Graphic Designer / Shopify Expert / Website Developer / Copywriter&nbsp; - Canada</h3>
Scott Luscombe is a freelance graphic designer, Shopify expert, website developer, and copywriter from Uxbridge, Canada. He holds a degree in Illustration from Sheridan College and a degree in Marketing from the University of Toronto.
Scott has been a freelancer for most of his professional career and has earned over $500k on Upwork. He has completed over 311 jobs and worked&nbsp;10,956 hours!&nbsp;
Scott's work includes graphic design and branding, illustration and icons, copywriting, website design and development, UX/UI, and printing and packaging. He also provides freelance coaching and consulting. Scott is a Top Rated Upwork Freelancer currently charging $99 per hour for various creative gigs.
Some of Scott's most notable work includes designs for Coca-Cola, the Canadian Cancer Society, Nickelodeon, and Wallet Ninja (to name a few).&nbsp;
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<h3>2. Kathy Edens - Marketing Consultant / Freelance Copywriter - United States</h3>
<a href="https://www.upwork.com/freelancers/~016177d19f0624c1a7?viewMode=1">Kathy Edens is a Top Rated Upwork Freelancer</a> with over $300k platform earnings! Kathy has been self-employed as a marketing consultant and freelance copywriter for almost ten years from her home in Ohio, United States.
She holds a Bachelor of Science in Professional Writing and Psychology from Oregon State University, which she says "...helps me understand how to reach your target audience with words."&nbsp;
Kathy has ghost-written several non-fiction books on various topics, including social entrepreneurship, healthcare, real estate investing, and the cannabis industry, to name a few.
Kathy also writes web content, sales pages, email marketing content, case studies, white papers, brochures, press releases, and more. Kathy's rates start at $86 per hour for her writing and marketing services.
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<h3>3. Koen van Oeveren - UX designer - Netherlands</h3>
Koen van Oeveren is a freelance UI &amp; UX designer from North Brabant, Netherlands, with almost ten years of experience. Koen works with several design agencies in the Netherlands, designing apps, websites, and eCommerce experiences for many international brands.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;
Koen holds a Bachelor of Applied Science in Communication and Multimedia Design from Avans University in the Netherlands. Koen's <a href="https://www.koenvo.com/index.html">portfolio website Koenvo</a> was nominated for a <a href="https://www.awwwards.com/sites/koenvo-ui-ux-portfolio">2021 awwwards. Award</a>.
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<h3>4. Pascal Strasche - Product / UX designer - Germany</h3>
Pascal Strasche is a product and UX designer with more than ten years of design experience from Germany. He holds a Master of Arts in Interaction Design and a Bachelor of Arts in Graphic Design, both from HAWK University of Applied Sciences and Arts.
For almost a year over 2020/2021, Pascal worked as the sole product designer to design Con Cubo's SaaS tool that helps complex organizations visualize and manage teams. He's also worked with German steel giant XOM Materials to find product solutions to digitalize&nbsp;Germany's steel industry.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;
In 2019, Pascal founded Product Design Resources, a growing archive of 800+ design resources, weekly updated for the design community.
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<h3>5. Paul Hunkin - Developer - New Zealand</h3>
Paul Hunkin is a freelance software consultant and developer from Tauranga, New Zealand, but currently living in Portugal.&nbsp;
Paul has over ten years of experience as a software developer with an impressive work history, including Google, NASA, InfoSys, and the Chinese aerospace industry leader COMAC.
He's worked with several early-stage startups designing everything from high-performance big-data systems to complex web applications to 3D rendering engines. He's also built a lot of the foundational code for independent games on Android.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;
Paul is a Top Rated Upwork Freelancer with over $400k in platform earnings. His rates start at $120 per hour for software development. <a href="https://paulh.consulting/">Check out Paul's website</a> for more about his impressive portfolio and work history.
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<h3>6. Jana Galat - Writer / Brand Strategist - Canada</h3>
Jana Galat is a freelance copywriter and brand strategist from Ontario, Canada. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Management and Organizational Studies from King's University College and an Honors in Business Administration from Western University.
Jana has extensive experience writing landing pages, email campaigns, social media ads, and print materials and says, "I am obsessed with creating copy that sells..."
After several years of professional work experience, Jana went freelance in 2019 and has quickly built a reputation as a <a href="https://www.upwork.com/freelancers/~01bfa17a48301876dd">Top Rated Upwork Freelancer</a> with over $70k in platform earnings. Jana's rates start at $100 per hour for copywriting and brand consulting.
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<h3>7. Kate H. - Logo Designer / Branding Expert - United States</h3>
Kate is a freelance professional logo designer and branding expert from Maryland, United States. Kate&nbsp;ran her own green wedding brand which she sold to mywedding.com in 2014, allowing her to focus on helping small&nbsp;businesses figure out what they want (and who they are) and translate that into design.
She holds a Master's degree in Environmental Management from Yale School of The Environment, and a J.D. in environmental law from Pace Law School.&nbsp;
Kate's skillset includes redesigning and updating material to make it easier to understand, building a consistent brand from a simple starting point like a logo, and creating unique logos that guarantee results.
Kate is a Top Rated Upwork Freelancer, and her rates start at $225 per hour. You can find out more about Kate on her <a href="https://www.upwork.com/freelancers/~013ce73876c1c18126" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">Upwork profile</a>.
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<h3>8. Marcos Rezende - UX designer - Canada</h3>
Marcos Rezende is a UX Designer from Ontario, Canada, with more than 13 years of experience. Marcos has worked in over 30 industry sectors for multinational organizations in the United States, Canada, Germany, and Brazil.&nbsp;
Some of Marcos' notable projects include apps for Ontario's COVID-19 dashboard, Urban Master Planning collaboration platform, and Reaction (kid's e-learning app), to name a few.&nbsp;
Marcos loves sharing his industry expertise with aspiring UX designers and regularly writes for the popular UX publication Career Foundry. Total recognizes Marcos as part of its "Top 3%" of global freelancer talent&mdash;a title given to elite freelancers in their given field.
We don't have access to Marcos' rates, but the best UX designers on Upwork earn upwards of $100 per hour. As a Toptal Top 3% freelancer, Marcos likely charges $200-$300 per hour.
<a href="https://www.marcosrezende.com/">Marcos Rezende's website</a> was nominated for the prestigious <a href="https://www.awwwards.com/sites/ux-portfolio-marcos-rezende">awwwards.</a> in 2021.
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<h3>9. Tanya Litvinova - UX/UI Designer - United States</h3>
Tanya Litvinova is a freelance UX/UI designer from New York City, United States. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Advertising Design / Communication Design from the Fashion Institute of Technology.
Tanya specializes in product, mobile, and web design as well as user experience flow, research, and validation.
"I have a passion to make the complex simple, shape behavior, design, plan, and strategize. Aiming for the best user experience, all the while balancing the needs of business and technology to create engaging, habit-forming digital products."
Tanya has worked with Fortune 100 &amp; Fortune 500 companies and successfully delivered business-transforming data-driven analytics, responsive BI dashboards, enterprise web apps, and management systems. Some of Tanya's notable clients include KOCH Industries, BlackRock Financial, BCG Group, and FireEye, to name a few.
<a href="https://www.upwork.com/freelancers/~0165035041b26e96df">Tanya is a Top Rated Upwork Freelancer</a> with more than $200k platform earnings. Her current rate starts at $162.50 per hour.
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<h3>10. Guangming Lang - Data Scientist - United States</h3>
Guangming Lang is a freelance data scientist from Michigan, United States. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics from New College of Florida and a Master of Science in Biostatistics from the University of Michigan. Guangming has also completed several Coursera courses in data science and machine learning.
Guangming has been a freelancer since 2013 and has worked across several industries, including fintech, trading, medicine, biotech, advertising, and HR.&nbsp;
Guangming is a Top Rated Upwork Freelancer with over $400k in platform earnings. He's completed 216 jobs on Upwork totaling 3,805 hours! Guangming's current rates start at $200 per hour.
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<h2>Secure Freelancer Workflows With TeamPassword</h2>
No matter how talented or reputable the freelancers and contractors you hire, your company must use secure workflows to protect your digital assets.
Freelancers often need access to shared accounts and tools. Using a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">password manager</a> is the first step to securing these accounts and platforms. You can also use a password manager to share credentials with employees, clients, and other stakeholders to ensure you never expose raw passwords via email, spreadsheets, chat apps, and other non-secure methods.
<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> lets you create groups to share access with only those who need it. When they're done, revoke access with a single click. No need to change passwords every time someone leaves the team.
If you do need to change a password, TeamPassword's built-in <a href="https://teampassword.com/password-generator">password generator</a> lets you create secure passwords between 12-32 characters using numbers, letters (uppercase/lowercase), and symbols.
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Ready to onboard clients and freelancers securely with TeamPassword's robust <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">password management solution</a>? <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a free trial</a> to secure your company's digital assets today!

Here are ten successful freelancers and what they do. These freelancers have earned their place as experts in their given field.

Here are ten successful freelancers and what they do. These freelancers have earned their place as experts in ...

10 extremely successful freelancers and what they do

Here are ten successful freelancers and what they do. These freelancers have earned their place as experts in their given field with excellent track records—many have worked with the biggest companies in the world!

<img src="https://cdn.buttercms.com/jVAbFAvKRzOC2GnXLYvD"/> Marco Sylvestre is the Chief Technical Officer for Venzee. With their #NoMoreSpreadsheets campaign, Venzee is dedicated to replacing the current practice of manufacturers using spreadsheets to share product information with retailers. With 90% of manufacturers around the world doing exactly that, it's the #1 problem for the trillion dollar e-commerce industry. Marco started selling computer parts on the side while still in high school and dealt with the spreadsheets suppliers used to send product information and inventory updates. His career in tech began as a software developer in 2000 and he later became a certified scrum master, something that has proven invaluable as a CTO managing a distributed developer and QA team. Similarly, Venzee's CEO, Kate had built and sold two e-commerce startups and like Marco, had experienced the pain of turning spreadsheets into updates compatible with the solutions her company was using. Together with Xin, a big data and connectivity specialist (and Venzee's Chief Architect), they founded and built Venzee. The Venzee team is distributed, a practice made popular by companies like Buffer, Zappo's and Invision, and have team members in 12 countries and 14 time zones. Not to mention customers in more than 30 countries. <h4>Daily Workflow</h4> Marco's daily routine is a reflection of his duties as CTO: all over the place. His main task is to be the link between the business and the product. Setting up systems for support and development, he oversees a lot of the processes throughout the company. He makes sure the rules that have been set in place for the engineers and dev team are being followed to best practice. Also, in keeping up with the technical side of things, Marco uses his past experience as a QA manager to test with the team. One role Marco thoroughly enjoys is customer support. He loves learning about Venzee's customers, helping to solve their issues, and figuring out how they use the product. Marco, Kate, and Xin all have their hands in the Human Resources process and share various other administrative responsibilities.<img src="https://cdn.buttercms.com/wsFC9lQTcmbFrDrXF5Gz"/> <h4>Venzee + TeamPassword</h4> "TeamPassword is the word I repeat most during my day," Marco tells us, "it's, my Bible." The Google Extension is his right hand. As an everyday tool for him, he feels good about managing security as well as generating new passwords all the time. Since he also manages personal passwords within TeamPassword, Marco likes the having the segregation between personal and business within the same account. Marco found TeamPassword on a quest for an easy and effective solution to password management and security. He was familiar with LastPass and liked their product but was not a fan of the hefty price tag. He knew one thing for sure: he did not want to use an Excel spreadsheet. After a few more searches, he found TeamPassword and it didn't take long before he fell in love with the use of groups within the product. To be able to be granular and specific with who has access to what is an alluring feature for him. TeamPassword is the solution, he says "if you have more than 5 passwords and 2 people on your team." <h4>Marco's TeamPassword Wishlist</h4> Marco's wish list includes more focus on 2-step authentication and more liberty in choosing who has admin access to groups, and who has access to change passwords within the accounts. He would like to add accounts to groups rather than the other way around, a process that we here at TeamPassword definitely have on our radar. If Marco's positive attitude and infectious passion have you ready to jump on your free TeamPassword trial click <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup">here</a>.

Marco Sylvestre is the Chief Technical Officer for Venzee. With their #NoMoreSpreadsheets campai gn, Venzee is dedicated to replacing the cu

Marco Sylvestre is the Chief Technical Officer for Venzee. With their #NoMoreSpreadsheets campai gn, Venzee is dedicated to ...

Customer Spotlight - Marco Sylvestre, Venzee

Marco Sylvestre is the Chief Technical Officer for Venzee. With their #NoMoreSpreadsheets campai gn, Venzee is dedicated to replacing the current practice of manufacturers using spreadsheets to share product information with retailers. With 90% of manufacturers around the world doing exactly that, it's the #1 problem for the trillion dollar ...

&nbsp; You may have observed a few changes at TeamPassword. If you have, good! That means our work hasn't gone unnoticed. The team has spent the past few months creating a brand identity that we feel aligns with both our own identity and how we view our relationship with you, our customers.
<h2>Why the change?</h2>
 It took us a few years to really get to know our customers and understand how they perceive us. Once we understood the types of people and companies we were working with, we were better able steer into our true identity. We have a lot to offer. Who we are and what we do is directly reflected in the ease and convenience we allow our clients to feel when working on projects, or developing their products. We needed a brand that embodied the ideals we (and you) work so hard to achieve.
<h2>So? How'd it go?</h2>
 Ocupop is a kickass creative agency that specializes in branding and we owe a lot of credit to them. They had a good understanding of our needs and the insight and knowledge we needed to get productive feedback. Our team vibed with their team from the very beginning and throughout the entire process. The evolution of identity does not happen without challenges, of course. We relied on our entrepreneurial experience, research, and (most importantly) our gut instinct to help guide us through the process. And Ocupop's focused vision helped us to see the progress with fresh objectivity.
<h2><img src="https://cdn.buttercms.com/i9RWLBy9T1ueo4o7l64P" /></h2>

<h2>Then it clicked.</h2>
 At first sight, the new logo was perfect. It felt dynamic. It really emulated the feeling we get from our company. We knew that if this is how it made us feel, it could only make our customers feel just as good. 
<h2>What do we stand for?</h2>
 Over time, we've realized that most of our client base aren't folks who don't know anything about password management, but rather folks who do. These people know what they want in a password manager and are looking for the best fit for their needs. We feel our re-brand reflects exactly what our clients want: a way to unlock their team's productivity. Rest assured we're still the same great product with the same great team. We hope you appreciate the new brand and feel the same way about it that we do. Keep your eye out for a number of great changes coming in the future! If you have any questions or feedback, feel free to drop us a line. We would love to chat with you!

You may have observed a few changes at TeamPassword. If you have, good! That means our work hasn't gone unnoticed. The team has spent the pa

You may have observed a few changes at TeamPassword. If you have, good! That means our work hasn't ...

Revealing Our New Brand

You may have observed a few changes at TeamPassword. If you have, good! That means our work hasn't gone unnoticed. The team has spent the past few months creating a brand identity that we feel aligns with both our own identity and how we view our relationship with you, our ...

Show of hands, who remembers when Amazon had an outage in <a href="http://www.informationweek.com/cloud/infrastructure-as-a-service/amazon-disruption-produces-cloud-outage-spiral/d/d-id/1322279">September of 2015</a>? How badly did it affect you? Were you upset that Netflix also went down, leaving you totally cut off from the digital world? <img src="https://cdn.buttercms.com/jphvrZjzQI26kFCYyf8a"/> Since TeamPassword was also affected, our friends and clients all over the web had issues gaining access to their passwords. Since they didn't have their passwords they were unable to get their work done, and even worse not able to get into the systems they needed to help them recover when an event like this happens. This internet hiccup inspired us. In an effort to never let something like this happen again, we created our very own Failover Zone. Our Failover Zone is set up so that even if Amazon goes down for the entire US, you will still have read-only access to your passwords. We want to hold ourselves accountable, and make sure you're never without access to the accounts you need to do your job, and, recover from disasters. Here are a few quick answers to frequently asked questions: What, exactly, is a Failover Zone? Our servers are hosted by Amazon in the US. This is generally fine, Amazon goes through extraordinary measures to make sure their servers are always up and running--and successfully so! Amazon powers a large percentage of internet traffic. However, technology being what it is, sometimes the worst happens, and an entire data center goes down, taking our service with it. For this reason, we set up our Failover Zone, which is a copy of our servers and database setup on an entirely different continent. And let me tell you: these servers are vigilant! They're constantly updating their data based off of our main servers, so should the cord somehow get cut, our failover zone will be up to date with your latest changes without someone at TeamPassword needing to restore a backup. Why is this important? Well, you need access to your stuff, don't you? I *do* need access to my stuff. Good call! Where can I find the Failover Zone? Our read-only Failover Zone will always be <a href="https://failover.teampassword.com/">available here</a>. Phew, that makes me feel better. Anything else I should know? We've also put up our new <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/status">status page</a>! If the service is unreachable for any reason we'll update the status page on when to use the failover service. We'll provide status updates so you'll always be in the loop. Rest assured that we're working diligently to ensure that we're the top password vault available and that secure password management systems are in place to keep your information safe. Still have questions about Failover Zones and how they work? Want to build this into your disaster recovery process? Shoot us a line in the comments section or hit us up on Twitter <a href="http://twitter.com/teampassword">@TeamPassword</a>

Show of hands, who remembers when Amazon had an outage in September of 2015 ? How badly did it affect you? Were you upset that Netflix also

Show of hands, who remembers when Amazon had an outage in September of 2015 ? How badly did ...

Product Update: Failover Zones

Show of hands, who remembers when Amazon had an outage in September of 2015 ? How badly did it affect you? Were you upset that Netflix also went down, leaving you totally cut off from the digital world? Since TeamPassword was also affected, our friends and clients all over the ...

Managing passwords shouldn't get in the way of doing good work for your clients. However, when each client has several, dozens, or hundreds of passwords to manage, it's easy to get overwhelmed. There's nothing quite so infuriating as getting held up on a big project because you can't "find the damn password." Managing passwords on a shared Google Doc can be not only messy but insecure (anyone with edit access can change those privacy settings!) And a password-protected Excel document is going to become outdated over several different versions on different people's computers. Who wants to spend more time looking at spreadsheets, anyway? 

 What do we suggest? Signing up for a team password manager app like <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">TeamPassword</a> (totally unbiased recommendation, obviously), and using one of the below methods to easily organize your passwords.
<h2>Method 1: Group passwords by client</h2>
 This one is straightforward: every time you sign a new client, you'll create a new group for that client in TeamPassword. You can add your whole client services team to that group in TeamPassword, or only add the people assigned to that client account - whatever works best for your agency. As with all of the methods covered in this post, you should also have groups for your internal passwords, just like any small business. When it works: This approach works well for clients who are particularly sensitive to who has access to their accounts. For example, if you have to create a "silo" to manage a client who competes with another client, structuring your passwords this way ensures that Pepsi's Twitter manager can't login and sabotage Coke's account. When it's not great: If you are constantly signing many new clients, then creating new password groups on a regular basis may become onerous (but we're working to streamline this process). Still, this is probably the simplest way for most agencies to manage passwords.
<h2>Method 2: Group your passwords by internal team</h2>
 If you have teams of employees that work together to service client accounts, and those employees don't bounce around from team to team often, this method could be right for you. You can just set up your password groups once, and add new client information as it comes in. When it works: If you have large client accounts, and many employees from your team service each account, this will cut down on the time it takes to organize your passwords. When it's not great: If every client has a different, intermingled mix of team members, this method will become complicated to manage.
<h2>Method 3: Add all client passwords to one large group</h2>
 With this approach, your agency can simply create one group for client passwords and add all client accounts and client services employees. When it works: This is great for smaller agencies who collaborate on almost all client accounts. When it's not great: This approach breaks down when you have a large number of clients and employees. Imagine if you stored 100+ Twitter accounts in one group and had to hunt down the correct account! Of course, TeamPassword's search features help with that, but only if you know what to search for and each password has been properly named.
<h2>The Bottom Line</h2>
 Taking the time to think through and set up a password management system will save you time and stress down the road. Once you establish a login management system that works for your marketing, PR, or creative agency, you can let the password details fade into the background, and focus on providing excellent services to your clients. <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup">Try TeamPassword now</a>, and follow @teampassword on Twitter for more management and security tips.

Managing passwords shouldn't get in the way of doing good work for your clients. However, when each client has several, dozens, or hundreds

Managing passwords shouldn't get in the way of doing good work for your clients. However, when each client ...

3 Ways to Use a Team Password Manager for Your Agency

Managing passwords shouldn't get in the way of doing good work for your clients. However, when each client has several, dozens, or hundreds of passwords to manage, it's easy to get overwhelmed. There's nothing quite so infuriating as getting held up on a big project because you can't "find the damn password."

Managing passwords on a shared Google Doc can be not only messy but insecure (anyone with edit access can change those privacy settings!) And a password-protected Excel document is going to become outdated over several different versions on different people's computers. Who wants to spend more time looking at spreadsheets, anyway?

We here at TeamPassword know how important security is to you. If it wasn't, you wouldn't be bothering to search for the best enterprise password manager. But you are, and that's why we're excited to announce our newest feature: Avatars!  The use of avatars within our product allows for you to see, at a glance, who your accounts are being shared with and who on your team has access to what. This feature makes everything a little quicker, a little easier, and a heck of a lot more convenient. <img src="https://cdn.buttercms.com/BGo2VwTSQyjG8j6xSHDR"/> Look at all these little faces, ready to share some passwords and get to work We have always fancied ourselves as a people-centric company. We care that our product fits the way you and your team operate. We know that who you are drives what you do; we want to make your experience with us feel organic and human. The use of avatars keeps your accounts feeling people focused. Every time you see the tiny, smiling face of one of your teammates staring right back at you, you'll know that all of your sensitive information is in the right hands. <img src="https://cdn.buttercms.com/Sj5VEbPlSnizJfSVfR9I"/>Password sharing- like a little wink between you and your team ;) So, now that we're all extremely amped up on this new feature, tell us, will you be keeping the same old avatar from the days of yore or do you think it's time for a little update? Perhaps throw it back a little so we can see what your hair looked like in high school. No matter what you choose, you can always change your avatar with us using <a href="http://en.gravatar.com/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Gravatar</a>. Follow <a href="https://twitter.com/teampassword" rel="noopener" target="_blank">@TeamPassword</a> on Twitter for more fun stuff and keep up to date on new tips and features at TeamPassword.com/blog Convinced? <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup" rel="noopener" target="_blank">give TeamPassword a whirl</a>.

We here at TeamPassword know how important security is to you. If it wasn't, you wouldn't be bothering to search for the best enterprise pas

We here at TeamPassword know how important security is to you. If it wasn't, you wouldn't be bothering ...

Introducing Avatars: See the People You'll Be Sharing Passwords With

We here at TeamPassword know how important security is to you. If it wasn't, you wouldn't be bothering to search for the best enterprise password manager.  But you are, and that's why we're excited to announce our newest feature: Avatars!

Why yes, yes we did just Tweet that. Every day in the month of February, we are posting our old passwords to our most important accounts on Twitter. 


<h2>Uh.. why?</h2>
 Did seeing our bank password grab your attention? We want to shed light on the importance of password security. Changing your password regularly prevents against any security issues and keeps your accounts safe. You don't want your most personal information vulnerable, do you?
<h2>Ok, so why should you care?</h2>
 How important is it to change your passwords regularly? They're secure enough, right? You have a mix of caps and lowercase letters, you have numbers, and there is no way a hacker knows your third-grade teacher's last name anyway. Well, unfortunately for you and your third-grade teacher, it happens more often than you think. In fact, <a href="https://nakedsecurity.sophos.com/2013/04/23/users-same-password-most-websites/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">most people use the same password for every account</a>, and <a href="http://most companies can't detect a compromised account in their company" rel="noopener" target="_blank">most companies can't detect a compromised account in their company</a>. We're not just talking about updating passwords, but finding old, insecure, even duplicate passwords. Updating them regularly will guard your most private and sensitive information. Your goal should be to create an impenetrable password vault. At TeamPassword we cannot emphasize enough just how imperative it is to keep your security in check. That is why every day this month, we are tweeting our old passwords to our most important accounts. If you can't take 5 minutes to change your password, take 15 minutes to change your password management. We'll build a password vault for you.
<h2>What do we do about it?</h2>
 We make password management easy. With TeamPassword, you can store all of your account passwords under one login and safely share passwords with team members so that everyone has access to the information they need to collaborate. Now you can shred that old spreadsheet you've been passing around the office. Now you can confidently shred that old spreadsheet you've been passing around the office, you won't need it anymore.
<h2>Have we convinced you yet?</h2>
 Ready to update your passwords? Simply put in the new info, and boom (!!!) your team has access. <img src="https://cdn.buttercms.com/vLSBMwnSCGaTRJmlOJGQ" />
(don't use this password: it's already taken.)
 Need help creating a solid password? We can generate secure, randomized passwords for you -- and remember them for you. So if you're finding it difficult to stay on top of all your accounts and that old (and let's be honest, not super secure) spreadsheet just isn't cutting it, our shared password manager will help you-- and your team-- work more efficiently. Check us out at TeamPassword.com and try our <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup">free 14-day trial. </a> We'll handle the password management so you can focus on the things that make your product, and your company, awesome! P.S. (if you change your password, tweet about it! #29passwords)

Why yes, yes we did just Tweet that. Every day in the month of February, we are posting our old passwords to our most important accounts on

Why yes, yes we did just Tweet that.

Every day in the month of February, we are posting our ...

#29Passwords: An Old Password A Day Keeps the Hackers Away

Why yes, yes we did just Tweet that.

Every day in the month of February, we are posting our old passwords to our most important accounts on Twitter.

Password encryption is essential to store user credentials stored in a database securely. Without password encryption, anyone accessing a user database on a company's servers (including hackers) could easily view any stored passwords.
Even a strong 32-character password created using a <a href="https://teampassword.com/password-generator">secure password generator</a> is useless without password-encryption! If someone can read your password on a server, they can use it simply by copy/pasting it&mdash;no matter how long or complicated the password might be!
Encryption scrambles your password before saving it on the server. So, if someone hacks the server, instead of finding password123, they find a random series of letters and numbers.
In this article, we're going to explore the world of password encryption, why <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/tips-and-tricks-to-create-a-strong-password">strong passwords matter</a>, and how you can practice better password management!
<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> is the password management solution for small businesses! Create, store, and share login credentials safely with employees, contractors, and clients. <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> today!
&rlm;&rlm;&lrm; &lrm;[Table of Contents]
<ul>
<li><a href="#understandingpasswordencryption" rel="follow">Understanding Password Encryption</a></li>
<li><a href="#howdoespasswordencryptionwork" rel="follow">How Does Password Encryption Work?</a></li>
<li><a href="#5commonpasswordencryptionmethods" rel="follow">5 Common Password Encryption Methods</a></li>
<li><a href="#whystrongpasswordsmatter" rel="follow">Why Strong Passwords Matter</a></li>
</ul>
<h2 id="understandingpasswordencryption">Understanding Password Encryption</h2>
To explain password encryption effectively, we must first grasp the language. Several terms might be unfamiliar, so here is a quick intro to password encryption terminology.
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Key: Used to lock and unlock passwords using a random string of bits. You get private and public keys that crypt and decrypt data differently, but we won't get too deep in the weeds with keys!</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Bits: A logical state with one of two possible values, including 1/0, true/false, yes/no, or on/off as typical examples.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Block (block cipher): A deterministic algorithm operating on fixed-length groups of bits, called blocks.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Hash function: The algorithm that uses the key to create password encryption and decryption. A hash function is essentially a piece of code that runs every time someone saves a password or logs into an application.&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Hash: A random series of numbers and letters representing your password. The hash function uses your hash instead of the raw password for authentication.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Salt: Additional letters and numbers appended to the hash</li>
</ul>
&rlm;&rlm;&lrm; &lrm;
<h2 id="howdoespasswordencryptionwork">How Does Password Encryption Work?</h2>
When you save a new password, a hash function creates a hash version and saves that on the server.&nbsp;
Every time you log in using your password, the hash function recreates the hash to see if it matches what's stored. If the hashes match, the algorithm passes the authentication and logs you in.&nbsp;
For example:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Original password: Pa$$w0rd123</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Hashed password: 6AF1CE202340​FE71BDB914AD5357​E33A6982A63B</li>
</ul>
While this might seem secure, simple hashed passwords aren't hack-proof.
The hash function only creates a unique hash for each password, not each user. So, if multiple users have the password, Pa$$w0rd123, the hash will be exactly the same.
To overcome this encryption vulnerability, engineers salt passwords so each hash is unique, even if the passwords are identical.
<h3>How Salt Works</h3>
A salt appends a unique value of 8 bytes (16 characters) to the password before the hash function creates a hash. This way, even identical passwords are unique before the hash function.
For example:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Two identical passwords: Pa$$w0rd123</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Salt value one: E1F53135E559C253</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Salt value two: 84B03D034B409D4E</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Password one before hash: Pa$$w0rd123E1F53135E559C253</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Password two before hash: Pa$$w0rd12384B03D034B409D4E</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Password one hashed value (SHA256): 72AE25495A7981​C40622D49F9A52E4F15​65C90F048F59027BD9​C8C8900D5C3D8</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Password two hashed value (SHA256): B4B6603ABC670​967E99C7E7F1389E40​CD16E78AD38EB1468E​C2AA1E62B8BED3A</li>
</ul>
&rlm;&rlm;&lrm; &lrm;
<h2 id="5commonpasswordencryptionmethods">5 Common Password Encryption Methods</h2>
<h3>1. Data Encryption Standard (DES)</h3>
While applications no longer use Data Encryption Standard (DES), it's important to mention this password encryption method because of its history and influence on more secure modern standards.
IBM developed DES as a 56-bit encryption technology in the early 1970s. The NSA adopted and improved DES before it was approved worldwide as the encryption standard.
However, since the late 70s, hackers have been able to break DES encrypted passwords. In 1999, ethical hackers managed to break a DES key in under 24 hours.&nbsp;
To make DES more secure, engineers created Triple DES and later Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), which we still use today.
<h3>2. Triple DES</h3>
Triple DES uses three 56-bit keys (blocks) to create 168-bit encryption (some security experts argue that Triple DES is only 112 bits strong). Although Triple-DES is slowly being phased out, many financial institutions still use it to encrypt ATM PINs.
<h3>3. Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)</h3>
AES is the new encryption standard&mdash;trusted by the United States Government and many other prominent organizations globally. At 128 bits, AES is sufficiently secure, but most organizations prefer heavy-duty 256-bit encryption.
At <a href="https://teampassword.com/security">TeamPassword</a>, we use 256-bit encryption to store passwords, ensuring the highest levels of security for our clients. We're also a <a href="https://teampassword.com/security">secure hosting provider</a> holding multiple security accreditations.
Hackers can only break an AES encrypted password through a brute-force attack&mdash;trying password combinations to find the right one.
To counter brute-force attacks, applications will lock an account after a certain number of attempts or use tools like Google's reCAPTURE.
<h3>4. Blowfish</h3>
American cryptographer, Bruce Schneier, designed Blowfish in 1993 as an antidote to the weak DES encryption. Blowfish uses a 64-bit block and variable key length of 32 to 448 bits.
Although Blowfish is more robust than its DES predecessor, the 64-bit block is still vulnerable to attacks, most commonly birthday attacks&mdash;a cryptographic attack that exploits the mathematics behind the algorithm.
To solve Blowfish vulnerabilities, engineers created Twofish in 1998 (128-bit blocks with 256-bit keys) and Threefish in 2008 (256, 516, 1024-bit blocks with 256, 516, 1024-bit keys).
<h3>5. Rivest-Shamir-Adleman (RSA)</h3>
RSA is one of the oldest and widely used to transfer data securely. The encryption works with two keys, two large prime numbers, and an additional auxiliary value.
Due to the complicated encrypting and decrypting process, there is no known method for breaking RSA encryption.&nbsp;
Although widely used for transferring data, RSA is slow and not suitable for password encryption.
&rlm;&rlm;&lrm; &lrm;
<h2 id="whystrongpasswordsmatter">Why Strong Passwords Matter</h2>
Password encryption can only prevent criminals from viewing saved credentials stored on a server&mdash;but cannot prevent hackers from guessing weak/commonly used passwords. If you <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/colonial-pipeline-ransomware-attack-dont-reuse-passwords">reuse the same password for multiple accounts</a>, this also puts you at risk!
Encryption is most effective when users create robust, unique passwords for every account. For example, a random 32-character password with letters, numbers, and special characters hashed and salted is near impossible to guess or decode, even using a computer!
In another scenario, let's assume you have a strong 32-character password, but you use it for every account. If hackers manage to steal that password, they have access to every account using the same credentials! Your strong password is effectively useless.
<h3>Improving Your Password Management</h3>
Now that you understand password encryption and the associated vulnerabilities, you can see why strong passwords are essential.
Effective password management is crucial to protect yourself against cyberattacks or in the highly likely event of a data breach where hackers steal your credentials.
Criminals are after the low-hanging fruit&mdash;people who use weak passwords!
5 tips for creating stronger passwords:
<ol>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Create strong passwords for every account. The easiest way to do this is using a password generator. <a href="https://teampassword.com/password-generator">TeamPassword has a free password generator</a> anyone can use to create passwords from 12-32 characters using uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and special characters. We recommend creating passwords as long as the application will allow.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Never create passwords shorter than eight characters, with 12 being our recommended minimum.&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Never reuse the same password for multiple accounts.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Never create passwords with your name, family member's names, or pet's names. With social media, this information is freely available. Criminals can add those names to algorithms for brute-force attacks.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Don't store passwords in digital notepads or spreadsheets. We recommend using a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">password manager like TeamPassword</a> to create and store your credentials.</li>
</ol>
&rlm;&rlm;&lrm; &lrm;
<h2>Why You Need a Password Manager like TeamPassword</h2>
We have so many accounts these days; it's almost impossible to create unique, memorable, secure passwords for each one. A password manager solves this problem.
Instead of remembering the credentials for every account, you only need to memorize the one to log into your password manager.&nbsp;
TeamPassword keeps all of your credentials safely stored and encrypted, so you never have to memorize a password again. Instead of entering your credentials, you use one of TeamPassword's browser extensions (Chrome, Firefox, and Safari) to log into accounts.
<h3>Built for Teams</h3>
TeamPassword's best feature is its ability to share credentials with team members securely. Instead of sharing passwords, you provide access through TeamPassword.&nbsp;
Employees <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">use TeamPassword</a> to log in, meaning you never share raw passwords&mdash;no more worrying about unauthorized access or sharing.
You can create groups in TeamPassword to share access with employees, clients, contractors, and freelancers. When someone no longer needs access, remove them from the group with a single click. No need to change passwords every time someone leaves a project!
<h3>Built-In Password Generator</h3>
TeamPassword features a built-in secure password manager so you can create robust passwords for every account. TeamPassword also ensures you never reuse the same credentials so that you won't fall victim to credential stuffing attacks!
With a built-in password generator, you can change passwords regularly, and TeamPassword will update the new credentials for all users!
<h3>Monitor Login Activity</h3>
TeamPassword's activity log keeps track of every action across all of your accounts&mdash;logins, password changes, new team members, sharing access, and more.
You can also set up email notifications for all TeamPassword actions so that you can react fast to any suspicious activity.
<h3>Get Your Free TeamPassword Trial</h3>
Password encryption is not enough to protect your business from password vulnerabilities! You need a robust password manager like TeamPassword to create, store, and share credentials securely.
&rlm;&rlm;&lrm; &lrm;
<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> and let TeamPassword secure your company's digital assets.

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In an increasingly digital world, we&rsquo;re switching more and more of our daily lives over to the Internet. While this brave new world is exciting and convenient, it&rsquo;s not without its problems.&nbsp;
The issue of unsafe passwords has been around for a while. But have you ever thought about where and how to store them?
Most of us have several passwords, and we&rsquo;re encouraged to never duplicate them. Some people simply write them all down on a piece of paper &mdash; which is fraught with danger. But others store their passwords electronically.
As you&rsquo;re about to find out, not all electronic systems of password storage are <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/blog/10-things-you-need-to-do-to-keep-passwords-safe" target="_blank" rel="noopener">safe</a>. Here are five of the most dangerous ways to store your passwords.&nbsp;
But before we begin:
Avoid bad idea passwords and dangerous storage methods with TeamPassword. This advanced <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/blog/why-you-need-a-password-manager" target="_blank" rel="noopener">password manager</a> features a selection of security features, including password encryption and two-step verification. Sign up for a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" rel="follow">free trial</a> today.&nbsp;

<h2>1. Email</h2>
Have you ever emailed yourself a password to ensure you&rsquo;re never without it? Great idea, right? Actually, emailing yourself your passwords is a really bad idea, and here&rsquo;s why:
<ul>
<li>Emails are usually sent in plain text. Without encryption, your passwords are susceptible if your email account is ever compromised.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Unsafe passwords sent via email often pass through several systems and servers. There&rsquo;ll also be a copy in your sent folder. If someone else can access your email account, your passwords become vulnerable.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Some email platforms store data locally on a drive. If someone steals your computer, phone, or tablet, your passwords become vulnerable.</li>
</ul>
A really bad idea for passwords is to send them via email &mdash; either to yourself or someone else. <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/blog/have-i-been-hacked-how-to-know-for-sure" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hackers </a>and scammers are more resourceful than ever, and they can often steal your information before you realize you&rsquo;ve been compromised.&nbsp;
It&rsquo;s tempting to send a quick email to yourself containing unsafe passwords when you sign up for new online services. For the sake of an extra minute or two, don&rsquo;t give fraudsters easy access to your accounts. Use an encrypted email vault to safeguard all your passwords.&nbsp;
<h2>2. Online Documents</h2>
A lot of people like the convenience of saving crucial information using online document systems such as Google Docs. But this is a bad idea for passwords, as these systems are designed for text &mdash; not sensitive data.
Yes, a password might protect your online document manager from unauthorized access. But what happens if that password is compromised? Many document software platforms don&rsquo;t offer encryption, two-step verification, or even the most basic security measures.&nbsp;
If you use online documents regularly, you&rsquo;re probably accessing your account on a regular basis &mdash; across several devices. What happens if you step away for a moment to buy a coffee, speak to a friend, or use the bathroom?
A criminal can access an unattended online document platform in seconds. And if this happens, it doesn't take a lot of effort to steal your unsafe passwords.&nbsp;
<h2>3. Instant Messaging Service</h2>
Instant messaging services provide us with a convenient way of staying in touch with friends and family. WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Snapchat were designed for private online conversations &mdash; not for storing passwords.
People who store their passwords on these apps do so because they believe they&rsquo;re fully encrypted. While that&rsquo;s often the case, it&rsquo;s important to remember that instant messaging services are often left open and operating in the background.
Imagine someone picks up your phone while you&rsquo;re not paying attention. If you left your device unlocked, that person would be able to access your password in seconds.
It&rsquo;s always a bad idea when passwords are stored on instant messaging services. By nature, these apps are designed to operate in the background &mdash; alerting you when someone sends a message. And because they&rsquo;re open, anyone with the device in their hand might be able to steal your unprotected passwords.&nbsp;
Don&rsquo;t fall into the trap of utilizing bad ideas for password storage. Sign up for a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">free trial</a> with TeamPassword, and give your unsafe passwords the protection they require.
<h2>4. Online Note-taker</h2>
Developers design online note-takers for everyday lists and reminders. While they&rsquo;re great for creating to-do and shopping lists, they&rsquo;re not so good for storing unsafe passwords.&nbsp;
An app such as Apple Notes is easy to use, accessible, and convenient. But it doesn&rsquo;t offer two-step authentication, encryption, or any sophisticated form of security.&nbsp;
If your computer or mobile device is unlocked, your saved passwords are vulnerable. In many cases, a criminal would simply need to open the app to gain access to your sensitive information.&nbsp;
OK, you might be extra vigilant when it comes to keeping your phone or computer locked. But hackers are resourceful, and they&rsquo;re very good at discovering unsafe passwords. Once they access your phone, any passwords stored in your note-taking app become vulnerable.&nbsp;
<h2>5. On a Non-Password-Protected Device</h2>
Of all the bad ideas for passwords, storing them on non-password-protected devices is about the worst. You might think that your tablet or laptop never leaves your side. But if your device is ever stolen, you&rsquo;ve given the criminals the easiest possible opportunity to access your saved passwords.&nbsp;
If you&rsquo;re determined to store passwords on a physical device &mdash; which is never a good idea &mdash; make sure the device password is a complex combination of letters, numbers, and symbols. And it should contain at least 12 characters.&nbsp;
<h2>Use TeamPassword for Extra Protection</h2>
Remembering and safely storing a dozen or more passwords isn&rsquo;t a simple task. By locking away all your passwords in a digital vault, you get maximum protection and easy access.&nbsp;
TeamPassword offers a range of <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/security" target="_blank" rel="noopener">security features</a> &mdash; designed to keep your passwords safe. Offering two-step authentication and encryption, this powerful protection system solves the problem of unsafe passwords with ease. Sign up for a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">free trial</a> to see these exciting features for yourself.&nbsp;

Storing passwords inappropriately can leave you open to fraud and theft. Avoid these storage methods at all costs. | TeamPassword Blog

Storing passwords inappropriately can leave you open to fraud and theft. Avoid these storage methods at all costs. ...

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