I have been an avid user of Google’s password saver feature on Android. It was introduced alongside Android 8 Oreo. It is a lifesaver because I have tens of passwords that I cannot remember. The feature works in collaboration with autofill, which is also gaining momentum for groups that share that problem with me. And that it simply works – but security-conscious people are mostly skeptical about it.
Now, Google has introduced Password Checker, a new service that will examine a user’s saved passwords if they have been compromised in any way. The feature, which is not new for Google web and Android phones, will be introduced in Chrome browser before the year ends.
Password Checker will be accessed via passwords.google.com. The same website will be used to sync passwords if Chrome users choose to add their Google account.
Of course, the passwords.google.com has been around for some time now but is not explicitly publicized unless you really looked for it. Nevertheless, Google wants its users to consider the website its primary password manager as is the likes of similar products such as LastPass.
How to use Password Checker
Users will see a new ‘check passwords’ button that will then compare saved passwords against internal databases of more than 4 billion login credentials that have been compromised or leaked. If a match is found, the user will then be prompted to change passwords associated with compromised accounts.
This is an outstanding feature that does not require you to spend money on paid apps that do the same thing. We all hope Google will natively introduce a password generator in the coming days.
