How to get your Gmail account or Google account back in 2 easy steps.

As with other services of its type, Google’s Gmail service requires users to memorise a username and password in order to gain account access. However, with so many different websites and services requiring this, and with the best advice being to use a different password for each site, it is inevitable that people may forget these details.

Fortunately, Gmail has been set up with some robust account recovery options in place, meaning that most users who lose account access will be able to regain that access quickly and easily by following some basic instructions.

How Do I Recover My Gmail Account? (If You Know Your Password).

If you know your password, but have forgotten your email address, the most simple way to regain account access is to visit the Gmail recovery page. From there, click on the link labelled ‘Forgot Email?’ and it will take you to its ‘Find Email’ form, where you will be able to look up your email address.

Here, you should enter either the mobile phone number linked to your Gmail account, or the recovery email address you provided when you first signed up for the account, and then click ‘Next’. On the next page, you will need to enter the first name and last name associated with your account. Once you have done this, click ‘Next’ again.

A verification code will then be sent to either your recovery email address, or your mobile phone. Enter this verification code in the box provided and click ‘Next’. Assuming you enter the correct verification code, you will then be shown the email address associated with your account.

You can then either click on the email address displayed and then enter your password when prompted, or you can make a note of your email address and sign in through the main Gmail login page.

Navigate to the Gmail Account Recovery page to regain access to your Google account. Remember, on the first screen, like the one above, you should enter the Gmail account address, that you want to get access to. On the next screen, you will be asked be prompted for your phone number or an alternative email address that Google can send a Verification Code to.

How Do I Recover My Gmail Account? (If You Don’t Know Your Password).

On the other hand, if you know your email address, but have forgotten your password, you will need to use the recovery process to reset it. To do this, go to the Gmail recovery page and enter your email address or phone number in the first field. Then click on the ‘Next’ button underneath.

At this point, you will be required to provide some security information, in order to confirm your identify. The most simple option is to have a verification code sent to your phone, which must then be entered into the field provided. You can also have a Verification Code sent to your alternative email address.

Alternatively, click on “Try Another Way”, and you can opt to answer a series of security questions associated with your Gmail account, one of which would be “When did you create this Google Account?”

Once you have confirmed your identity, simply follow the instructions provided on screen to reset your Gmail password. A temporary password will be sent to you, which you can use to log in. You will then need to set a new password for your account and this must not be a password you have previously used for the same account.

This process can also be followed in the event that your account gets hacked and you find yourself locked out of it.

How to Recover your Gmail Username.

If you are now sure what your Google Username is, Google has created a dedicated Username Recovery page, for this.

Gmail Account Recovery Tips.

If the above steps didn’t work for you and you received a “Google couldn’t verify this account belongs to you” message, you can simply try again.

Use these tips for the recovery process:

• Avoid typos and take note of uppercase and lowercase letters, when trying to enter your password.
• Enter the most recent password you recall. Google’s system will know of previous, older passwords.
• If you don’t remember any of your previous passwords, then make your best guess.
• Try not to skip questions. Take your best guess instead of moving on to another question.
• Use a computer or phone (and location) where you frequently sign in. The system will be able to detect that you are using a familiar IP address, and that you are who you say you are.
• Use the same browser that you always use.
• Find out when you created your account, if you can. Check your alternative email account for a sign-up Welcome email from Google.
• If th system asks for you to “enter an email address you can check now”, then enter the email address that you have added to your account when you signed up.
• If the recovery system asks you why you cannot access your account, then include details like, you are traveling, the error message that you received, possible malware on your computer, or that you recently changed your password (and have forgotten it). Every detail helps.
• If you have not accessed your account for 9 months or more, Gmail might deleted it from the server. In this case, recovery is no longer possible.

How to Recover a recently Deleted Google Account.

You have 2–3 weeks to recover a gmail account that has been deleted

To recover a deleted Google account, agin visit the account recovery page, enter your email address and follow the instructions.

If you continue having problems logging in to your Google Mail account, then see our Gmail Login Trobbleshooting page, or state your problem in the comment section.

Image: © Google.

The post Gmail Account Recovery first appeared on Email Settings.

List of the Top 5 most popular password managers. See the main advantages and disadvantages of installing a password manager program.
 

Pros and Cons of Password Managers – Should I get One?

Password manager software has grown in popularity, owing to the sheer number of passwords people need to remember. However, the decision of whether or not to get a password manager application requires an assessment of the pros and cons associated with these applications. Below, we take a closer look at three pros and two cons:
 
Pro#1: Password Managers Are Convenient.

Good password managers will be easy to use and allow you to store your login credentials for as many different services as you want. By saving your credentials, all you will need to do is log in to each service once and automatic logins will be available for future use. The software will also eradicate instances where you forget your password.
 
Pro #2: They will Enhance Online Security

It is highly recommended that a different password is used for each service, yet the vast majority of internet users re-use passwords multiple times, because remembering dozens of passwords is unrealistic. With password managers, however, this becomes a reality. A password manager can also be used to generate strong passwords.
 
Pro #3: You Can Sync Across Devices.

The very best password managers offer the choice of using it either online or offline. When this is the case, the online component can usually be used to sync across different devices. This means that your chosen application can be used with your desktop, laptop, smartphone and tablet.
 
Con #1: Single Point of Failure.

Most cyber security experts agree that the single biggest drawback of password managers is that they represent a single point of failure. This means that if you get locked out of the application for any reason, or if something goes wrong with the application itself, you could potentially lose dozens of passwords.
 
Con #2: They Are a Big Target For Hackers.

Finally, the fact that people store all of their passwords in their password managers makes them a high-value target for hackers and other cyber criminals. While most password managers use encryption and other security protections, they are not fool-proof, meaning hackers could theoretically gain access to all of your passwords.
 

The Top 5 Password Managers.

Here we list the Top 5 most popular password managers. We have no association to any of the programs.
 
1. LastPass Password Manager.

LastPass is often viewed as the gold standard for password managers. It supports two-factor authentication, has a user-friendly interface, is available for a huge range of devices and will even analyse the quality of your passwords. It is free to use on all platforms, although an enhanced ‘premium’ version is also available.

Go to www.Lastpass.com to try Lastpass for free.

Considered by many to be the main competitor for LastPass, KeePass is an open source option, with a number of great features. The software can be used offline, preventing unwanted syncing, but support is also there for use across devices too. It includes a password generator, uses strong encryption and is completely free.

Visit www.keepass.info to read more about KeePass.

Another long-standing option, Roboform has been around since the late 1990s and offers a number of excellent features. It can be used on multiple devices, while it also supports multiple identities, allowing more than one user to make use of it. It is free to use on a single device, but multi-device syncing requires the paid version.

Roboform’s Free Version can be downloaded from www.roboform.com. Roboform also offers a Digital Wallet for cryptocurrencies.

Launched in 2012, Dashlane has grown in popularity thanks to a number of interesting features. For example, the software will alert users if a website they have an account on has been hacked, and allows you to quickly change that password to protect your account. It also has an emergency contact function, and the standard version is free.

Visit www.Dashlane.com to try Dashlane for free.

Finally, 1Password is a solid option, which offers support for many different devices, uses strong encryption and has a customisable password generator, allowing you to set certain prerequisites for passwords. With that said, it operates a subscription model, which may not suit everyone, and stores encrypted passwords on the cloud.

Go to www.1Password.com to download 1Password for free.

Share your experiences with, or questions about, Password Managers in the comment section below.

The post The Best Password Managers – Top 5 first appeared on Email Settings.

Google Mail has just launched one of their biggest re-designsin recent memory. See want has changed here.

If you are here to create a new account, then go straight to our Gmail New Account page.

What is new in the revamped Gmail?

Google Mail changes include: Email snoozing, “nudging”, “smart replies”, and an Email Confidential Mode.

You will be invited to try the new design and features in a wlecome email, but ultimately Gmail expects to roll out the changes to all their 1.4 billion users. Keep an eye out for a “Try the new Gmail” tab in the settings at the top right of your screen.

New Gmail Confidentiality Mode.

The new Google Mail confidential mode allows you set “expiry dates” for emails and stop recipients from forwarding or copying these emails.

Set an expiration date for a sensitive email or to revoke it. This works by not sending the confidential email directly to the receiver, but sending a link to the content, which is placed on a seperate Web Portal. The sender decides how long the other party can view the message for.

You can also request “Two-factor authentication (2FA)” for each email. This works be aking the recipient to verify with a passcode received via text message, before they can open a confidential email.

Source: Google Gif

Put Google Emails on “Snooze for Later”.

Another  new feature is that you can “snooze” an email for later by hovering over an email in the Gmail inbox.
A new hover menu lets you choose what to do with a new email: Archive, Delete, Mark as Read, or Snooze for Later.

Google is also adding “nudging” of emails, which will highlight those email that Gmail deems require a time-sensitive action or response.

Source: Google Gif

New Gmail Design Changes.

Gmail’s web interface now lets the user collapse the left-side panel of navigation links and open up more horizontal space.

The mobile Gmail look will stay pretty much the same.

New Gmail Offline Mode.

Google has now introduced a new offline mode. Users who travel a lot, can now take their standard Gmail interface offline and work in the same environment.

An email will then automatically be sent out once the user has a WIFI connection again.

New Gmail “Smart Reply”.

Gmail will now roll out their controversial “Smart Reply” function to all users, which lets the Google AI read your incoming emails and suggest 3 “Quick Reply” options, such as “Yes, Please”, “Not Today, Sorry”, No, Thank you”, etc, depending on the email. This allows the receiver to make a faster answer. Google estimates that 10% of users use this option when offered.

Share your experiences with the new Gmail system in the comment section below.

Image: © Google.

The post New Gmail Account Settings first appeared on Email Settings.

If you are not sure what is considered a “safe” or “secure” password these days, a few good websites exists that will generate a random password for you,which is both secure and strong enough to frustrate any “brute force” password hack attempt.

Many other Password Generator websites exist, including one by Norton Symantec and Roboform, but they all basically do the same thing: Create a random password at a press of a button.
 

1. Passwordsgenerator.net.

This password generator at https://passwordsgenerator.net will generate a strong password for based on these optionable parameters:

Include Symbols: ( e.g. @#$% )
Include Numbers: ( e.g. 123456 )
Include Lowercase Characters: ( e.g. abcdefgh )
Include Uppercase Characters: ( e.g. ABCDEFGH )
Exclude Similar Characters: ( e.g. i, l, 1, L, o, 0, O )
Exclude Ambiguous Characters: ( { } [ ] ( ) / \ ‘ ” ` ~ , ; : . < > )
Generate On Your Device: ( do NOT send across the Internet )

What makes this generator a favorite is that it also will tell you tips on how to REMEMBER the generated password.

2. LastPass Password Generator.

The Password Generator at https://www.lastpass.com/password-generator is slightly different as it lets you decide whether to generate a password that is easy to remember (avoid numbers), easy to read, or with all possible characters.

3. StrongPasswordgenerator.com

The password generator at https://www.strongpasswordgenerator.com is included here bacause it generates passwords in your browser, so the password will never cross the internet. However, the passwords generated include all characters by default and can be hard to remember.

Add a comment below.

The post Password Generators first appeared on Email Settings.

How strong is your password really?

You may think that your current online passwords safe and strong, because you are using more than 8 characters in your password and both upper and lower case letters. Not necessarily so.

As hacking and account hijacking (with ransom) is the “new black” in organized crime, hackers are using more and more resources to crack easy passwords. Computers, as per Moore’s law, get more and more powerful each passing year, and will need less and less time to guess your password using brute force.

What used to be “safe” password, no longer is.

Fortunately, there are a few good password strength checker websites exists. Simply type in your proposed password, and the websites will let you know how safe your password really is.
 

1. Howsecureismypassword.net.

Howsecureismypassword.net can be found at https://howsecureismypassword.net. Its sponsored by Dashlane Password Manager, and the website will instantly tell you, how long it will take for an average computer to hack your password.

2. Kaspersky Password Checker.

This password checker is developed by Kaspersky Security, the Anti-Virus company. Find the checker at https://password.kaspersky.com. This chekcer takes repeated words/numbers into consideration (considered a no-no).

3. PasswordMeter.

Password meter  at http://www.passwordmeter.com, will give you a password strength score based on the following parameters:

Number of Characters
Uppercase Letters
Lowercase Letters
Numbers
Symbols
Middle Numbers or Symbols
Letters Only
Numbers Only
Repeat Characters (Case Insensitive)
Consecutive Uppercase Letters
Consecutive Lowercase Letters
Consecutive Numbers
Sequential Letters (3+)
Sequential Numbers (3+)
Sequential Symbols (3+)

Note, never use your actual password with password checkers, though the above websites are considered safe and secure. Use a slight variation of your password when testing.

The post Password Strength Checker first appeared on Email Settings.

How secure is my password? And, how do I choose a secure, safe and strong password?

Passwords are one of the most important aspects of our digital lives and are required by a huge number of services, ranging from email and social networking accounts, through to online banking and retail sites. However, it is absolutely essential that you choose a secure password, which cannot be easily guessed or cracked.

Although it is important to keep all of your online accounts secure, this is especially vital with your email account, because it potentially contains so much personal information. Below, we take a look at some of the do’s and don’ts.

It goes without saying, that you should avoid any of the passwords on this list. These passwords are unfortunately still in popular use, but are all very unsafe.

How to Choose a Secure Password:

Do:

• Choose a password that is at least eight characters long. The longer a password is, the harder it is for somebody to guess, or for a hacker to crack using specialist software.
• Make use of a combination of upper case and lower case letters, as well as numbers and symbols (if they are permitted). This will help to make your secure password more unique.
• Use more than one word, as password cracking software will find it easier to crack single-word passwords. You do not necessarily need to use spaces and it may be best to avoid using them between each word.
• Change your password regularly. In recent years, various high-profile email providers have experienced security issues, resulting in users’ passwords being compromised. Changing your password regularly will mean that even if somebody gains access to a leaked password list, the password contained within it will be out of date.
• Log out of your email account when you have finished using it. This will protect your account in the event that somebody gains access to your device and will also help to protect you from other data interceptions.
• Make use of two-factor authentication on any email service that offers it, as it will add an extra layer of security beyond your basic email password. This will often consist of sending an authentication code to your mobile number, which you can then enter to confirm that it is you attempting to log in.

Don’t:

• Use an email password that is identical to your password on another service. Re-using passwords puts you at greater risk, because a hacker who gains access to one online account could access others too.
• Write your password down, store it in any documents on your device, or share it with anybody else.
• Select any password that will be easy to guess by those who know you. For example, do not use a family member’s name, your date of birth, your favourite sports team, your phone number or your address. You should also avoid extremely common passwords, such as ‘password’, ‘pass1’ or ‘user’.
• Use the option for your web browser to ‘remember’ your password. The majority of browsers will store this information in plain text format. This means that, theoretically, anyone who gains access to your device and web browser will be able to read the password for your email account.
• Choose a password that you will find difficult to remember. While it can be tempting to use the longest and most complicated password you can, you want to avoid using a password that you need to write down somewhere, or which will be so secure that even you are unable to gain access to your account.
• Use a password that utilises an obvious sequence of numbers or letters. Examples of this include ‘12345678’, ‘abcdefgh’, ‘qwertyuiop’ and ‘a1b2c3d4’, but there are many more.

How Secure is My Password?

To find out how long it will take a computer to crack your password, visit www.howsecureismypassword.net. Enter your password and press enter, and the website will estimate how secure your chosen password is.

You can also check your password safety at www.roboform.com/how-strong-is-your-password and at https://password.kaspersky.com.

The post How Secure is My Password? first appeared on Email Settings.