Five Reasons Small Businesses Need a Password Manager

Your small business should rely on a password manager to ensure your employees use strong passwords, to simplify onboarding and offboarding processes, securely share files, avoid potentially losing money from a cyber attack and improve employee productivity. A business password manager allows you and your employees to store and protect all passwords, with each employee having their own digital vault.

Continue reading to learn the five benefits of using a password manager for your small business and what to look for in an effective password manager.

1. Ensures each employee is using strong passwords

If your small business uses a password manager, you can easily enforce strong password security policies for all your employees. You can set a minimum password length and require that all employees use Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) on their accounts related to your business for extra security. A password manager can also identify passwords that are weak or being reused, which can help employees determine which passwords need to be changed. With complete visibility into employee password practices, a password manager makes it easy to enforce the use of strong passwords.

2. Simplifies employee onboarding and offboarding

Your small business deserves a convenient way to onboard and offboard employees, and having a password manager can simplify these tedious tasks. A password manager aids the onboarding and offboarding processes by enabling you to securely share passwords when an employee first arrives and quickly change them if an employee leaves. For onboarding, a password manager conveniently stores and organizes an employee’s login credentials based on their role, taking less time for you to set up the new employee’s accounts. When offboarding, a password manager lets you remove a former employee’s access to all systems and quickly change their passwords so they cannot compromise any business data. Most password managers also support automated provisioning and de-provisioning when integrated with your identity provider.

3. Enables secure password and file sharing

You and your employees need to be able to securely share passwords and files within your small business to reduce the risk of compromised data. Passwords and files shared over email are unencrypted, which means they could be intercepted by a cybercriminal. Worse than sharing important information over email is writing passwords down on a sticky note or piece of paper that could easily be picked up by anyone and used to compromise business data. Using a password manager to share important passwords and files keeps your business’ confidential data secure and ensures it goes to the correct recipient.

4. Saves money in the long run

Password managers can help your small business save money in the long run in the event of a cyber attack. For example, if your small business did not have a password manager in place and used weak passwords, it could suffer a data breach and be forced to shut down completely if its data or finances were compromised, not to mention the tarnished reputation. According to Verizon’s 2024 Data Breach Investigations Report, 68% of data breaches occur due to an employee making an error or falling victim to phishing scams. It would cost much less to invest in a password manager to protect your financial information, customer data and other online accounts than to risk being unable to recover following a cyber attack.

5. Improves employee productivity

With a password manager, your employees can be more productive since they won’t have to remember passwords on their own or spend time resetting them. The only password employees need to remember is their master password, which acts as the key to enter their vault.  Additionally, since password managers also help employees generate strong passwords with its built-in password generator, employees save time by not having to create them on their own.

With Keeper^®, there is even a feature called KeeperFill, which automatically logs you in on any device, web browser or operating system, as long as you’ve downloaded the app or browser extension. Having this feature for your small business’ password management will help any employee log in to their accounts without needing to adjust to a different device, web browser or operating system for work.

What to look for in a password manager for your small business

When searching for the best password manager for your small business, there are several features you should consider based on your preferences and needs.

Zero-knowledge and end-to-end encryption

Your password manager should use zero-knowledge encryption, meaning all data stored in your vault can only be encrypted and decrypted by you. No one besides you can access your passwords if your password manager uses zero-knowledge encryption. For a password to be encrypted, it must be converted from a readable format into ciphertext, which neither people nor machines can read until it’s decrypted using an encryption key. The combination of a zero-knowledge model and end-to-end encryption is important for a business password manager because it ensures your employees’ passwords will only be known to them and protected from cybercriminals.

Passkey support

The password manager you choose for your small business should support passkeys for added security. A passkey allows you to log in to your accounts and apps without entering a password. Instead, you log in the same way you unlock your device. Keeper Password Manager supports passkeys, simplifying your employees’ login process by enabling them to manage their passkeys within their vault.

Secure sharing capabilities

Sharing login credentials and private files is important for your small business, so your password manager should enable you to share encrypted passwords and files with ease. Everything stored in your digital vault is encrypted, and when all your employees use a business password manager, you can easily give them access to any passwords or files they need. By using vault-to-vault record sharing, Keeper users can share records with team members while keeping information encrypted the entire time. Keeper also offers a feature known as One-Time Share, enabling users to share passwords and files with anyone, including non-Keeper users, for a limited time.

Cross compatibility

Your password manager should allow you and your employees to access your passwords and other important information from any device, web browser or operating system. A password manager like Keeper is ideal for small businesses that allow their employees to use different types of devices or web browsers because Keeper can be used on any device, no matter what web browser or operating system your employees use.

2FA code storage

Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) is a form of Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA), where you are required to enter another form of verification beyond your username and password to access an account. If you require your employees to enable 2FA, you should make sure whichever password manager you use for your small business can store 2FA codes. Some types of MFA that can be saved in a secure password manager like Keeper include answers to security questions and Time-based One-Time Password (TOTP) codes. A password manager that can store these 2FA codes reduces the amount of time your employees spend trying to log in to their accounts and increases their productivity and safety.

Dark web monitoring

An essential feature of your password manager should be its ability to monitor the dark web. Dark web monitoring is a tool that searches for specific information, like your email address or passwords, on the dark web, to ensure they have not been compromised. When you use Keeper Password Manager for your small business, you can use BreachWatch, an add-on feature that constantly scans the dark web and notifies you immediately if your stored login credentials are found. By receiving notifications about your credentials being found on the dark web, you and your small business can stay protected and take action quickly to secure your passwords.

The best password manager for small businesses

If you’re looking for a password manager that covers all your security needs, look no further than Keeper Password Manager. Using Keeper is the best way to protect your employees, customers and small business from potential cyber attacks due to its zero-knowledge encryption, passkey support, secure sharing abilities, cross compatibility, MFA storage and dark web monitoring features.

Start your free 14-day trial of Keeper Business to discover the vast benefits of using a password manager to protect your small business from cyber threats.