I am not entirely sure if this hasn’t been done somewhere else before, but as a 1Password user I find that what I’m about to offer you is incredibly valuable.1
Updated as of 10/31/13: There’s a new version of The 1Password Emergency Kit. The post that outlines what’s new and download links for the new version can be found here.
Imagine if something was to happen to you. Something that would keep you from accessing stuff on your computer that has passwords associated with it. It’s not a pleasant thing to think about, but we’d be foolhardy not to. I mean, we all keep an updated will2, and most other pertinent documents are kept in a fire safe or safe deposit box so that your next of kin can move through anything tragic that may befall you with as little resistance as possible.
But now that we spend so much time online – whether with online banking, email or earning a living – that having a failsafe in place isn’t just a good idea anymore. It’s mandatory.
That’s why I came up with the 1Password Emergency Kit.
I use 1Password to manage a lot of my personal information, for both online and offline credentials. As I’ve mentioned before, I only sync across my devices so that I keep this information as close to home as possible. The problem is that my wife has no idea how to use 1Password – and unfortunately has no current desire to get started.
This 1Password Emergency Kit allows me to leave a single printed piece of paper in our fire safe that contains all my wife needs to know about gaining access to my information kept in 1Password. It contains my master password (as well as the numeric passwords for my iOS versions) and instructions on how to access 1Password on all three of my platforms. It also outlines where she should go if she requires a more comprehensive look at 1Password, and what types of information she’ll find once she gets into my database.
I’ve created a downloadable version of the template I use for this in both PDF and plain text formats for you to have so that you can create your own 1Password Emergency Kit.
Using this document will give you — and those you trust in case of an emergency — peace of mind, knowing that you have given them every single password-based account you possess, as well as any other personal information you’ve kept in 1Password (such as software licenses and secure notes).3 Filling in your 1Password Emergency Kit will take very little time, but the amount of time it will save will be huge.
While I hope you never have to use The 1Password Emergency Kit template, I hope you’ll have it at the ready in case you do.
1Password Emergency Kit Template (PDF version)1Password Emergency Kit (Plain Text version)
1Like this little 1Password trick provided by my pal Brett Kelly over at Bridging the Nerd Gap.2You do have an updated will, right?3You do have all of this in 1Password, right?
