How to Setup and Use Avast! EasyPass Password Manager Avast! EasyPass was a password management tool designed to securely store login credentials, autofill web forms, and generate strong passwords. While Avast has since discontinued this standalone product in favor of newer security suites, understanding how it operated provides excellent insight into classic password management.
Here is a comprehensive guide on how users configured and utilized Avast! EasyPass. Step 1: Installation and Account Setup
Setting up the software required a few basic steps to integrate it with your operating system and browsers.
Download the Installer: Users downloaded the Avast! EasyPass setup file directly from the official Avast website or portal.
Run the Installation Wizard: Double-clicking the installer launched a standard wizard that copied the necessary files to the local hard drive.
Create a Master Password: This was the most critical step. Users had to create a strong master password. This password encrypted the local database and was the only way to unlock stored credentials.
Install Browser Extensions: EasyPass prompted users to install extensions for popular browsers like Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, and Google Chrome to enable seamless integration. Step 2: Importing and Adding Passwords
Once active, the software needed data to manage. Users could populate the database in three ways.
Automated Browser Import: During the initial setup, EasyPass offered to import passwords already saved insecurely within your web browsers.
On-the-Fly Saving: While browsing, entering credentials into a new website triggered a pop-up prompt from EasyPass asking to save the username and password.
Manual Entry: Users could open the main EasyPass dashboard, click “Add Entry,” and manually type in the website URL, username, password, and custom notes. Step 3: Using Autofill and the Password Generator
The primary benefit of EasyPass was daily convenience and enhanced credential security.
Logging Into Websites: When navigating to a saved website, the EasyPass browser extension automatically detected the login fields and filled in the credentials. Users just clicked “Login.”
Generating Strong Passwords: When signing up for new accounts, users clicked the EasyPass icon to launch the built-in password generator. It created long, random strings of characters that were virtually impossible to guess.
Form Filling: Beyond passwords, EasyPass allowed users to store personal profiles (names, addresses, phone numbers) to fill out tedious online registration and checkout forms with a single click. Step 4: Database Backup and Syncing
To prevent data loss, keeping a secure backup of the password vault was essential.
Cloud Synchronization: EasyPass utilized secure cloud syncing, allowing users to access their password vault across multiple authorized devices.
Manual Export: Users could export their encrypted database file to an external drive as an offline backup remedy.
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