Samarama is an Australian software developer, developing applications on iOS and macOS.
Why should I use a password manager?
Some articles on password managers:
Dangers of auto-fill in web browsers
SamuraiSafe doesn't use autofill of web pages with the web browser – but many password managers do –
and there are risks in doing so:
Security and Privacy often incur a tradeoff with convenience. Solutions are often complex and may not be correct or complete.
My view is keep things simple. See also
Password Managers: Attacks and Defences below.
The SamuraiSafe Design Philosophy is minimalist –
simple and secure, with your private data fully under your control.
SamuraiSafe News
Password History and Safe Format Upgrades (iOS and macOS)
May 2018
SamuraiSafe now supports password history (retaining previously saved passwords).
In order to use the Password History feature, each password safe requires a file format upgrade.
It is important not to enable this option until all your devices on which you use SamuraiSafe are updated.
See
Support for details on migration.
Change Warning Dialogs for iCloud safes on iOS 11 & macOS 10.13
February 2018
Apple has introduced in iOS 11 and macOS 10.13 low level notifications when iCloud documents are opened by an app.
A side effect of these notifications, and the way SamuraiSafe is implemented, is that you may receive a warning of
changes being made on other device, when a change has not been made — rather the safe has simply been opened
on the other device. See
Support for details.
SamuraiSafe for iOS V1.4.12
September 2017
Added Touch ID/Face ID, Drag and Drop for iPad and improved password generation options.
SamuraiSafe for macOS V1.3.13
July 2017
After a short flurry of updates during the Aussie winter:
• New pass phrase generator option modelled on
Diceware.
• New standard password generator (faster, and the frequency distribution of character classes is better).
• Added tabbing control [macOS 10.12]+.
• Improved security by ensuring that group and entry titles are never visible on screen when safe is locked.
• Ability to use SamuraiSafe with keyboard only has been restored.
• The menu bar icon has been restored.
SamuraiSafe for macOS V1.3.7
December 2016
• You can now drag and drop the NAME, PASSWORD and WWW (URL) buttons onto text fields in other applications.
• Improved notification of iCloud changes made on other devices. Reverts to read only mode if required.
• Clarified use of iCloud Drive for macOS 10.11 and later in Help.
SamuraiSafe for macOS CSV Migration tool
November 2016
If you wish to migrate to SamuraiSafe and your old data is in CSV format (or in an Excel file), a new tool may assist.
See
Support for more details.
Password Security News
Diceware passwords now need six random words to thwart hackers
February 2017
Why you still can’t trust password strength meters
August 2016
The Emperor’s New Password Manager: Security Analysis of Web-based Password Managers
August 2014
A security analysis of five popular web-based password managers. Unlike “local” password managers, web-based password managers run in the browser. The authors identify four key security concerns for web-based password managers and, for each, identify representative vulnerabilities through case studies. The attacks are severe: in four out of the five password managers studied, an attacker can learn a user’s credentials for arbitrary websites.
Password Managers: Attacks and Defences
August 2014
“Secure Password Managers” and “Military-Grade Encryption” on Smartphones: Oh, Really?
March 2012
Resources
SamuraiSafe Encryption Algorithms
May 2013
Should you trust SamuraiSafe? The core encryption algorithm used in SamuraiSafe is published on
github.
However, as Belenko and Sklyarov (above) point out, you should always also set a device password, and encrypt your device backups.
Android vs Apple iOS Security Showdown
July 2012
