Choosing a Strong Master Password

The key to your vault

Overview

Your master password is the single key to your entire vault. It’s the only password you need to remember, so it must be both strong and memorable. Importantly, Heimlane cannot recover your master password if you forget it.

What Makes a Strong Master Password

A strong master password should be:

  • Long: At least 14 characters (longer is better)
  • Unique: Never used for any other account
  • Memorable: Easy for you to remember without writing it down
  • Random: Not based on personal information (birthday, pet’s name, etc.)

When you create it, Heimlane checks that it has at least 14 characters and includes an uppercase letter, a lowercase letter, a number, and a special character.

Don’t use dictionary words an attacker could guess. Instead, start from a sentence only you would know - a personal memory, not a famous quote:

My first pet name was toad and it was a parrot, that was in year 2010

Take the first letter of each word, keep the commas, full stops and numbers, and capitalize the first letter plus any letter that follows a comma or a full stop. Finish with a symbol such as !:

Result: Mfpnwtaiwap,Twiy2010!

That’s a long, random-looking password with an uppercase letter, lowercase letters, a number and a special character - yet you only have to remember the sentence. Forget the password? Rebuild it from your sentence.

Never put your sentence (or the password) in your Password Hint. The hint is stored on our servers and can be emailed to you, so anything in it could give your password away. You can also choose not to set a hint at all, for maximum security.

Steps to Create Your Master Password

  1. Choose a sentence only you would know

    • A personal memory works best - not a famous quote or song lyric
    • Include a number, such as a year, so your password has a digit

  2. Take the first letter of each word

    • Keep the commas and full stops, and keep any numbers as they are

  3. Capitalize the right letters

    • Capitalize the first letter, and any letter that follows a comma or full stop
    • Finish with a symbol such as !

  4. Test your memory

    • Don’t set your master password until you can rebuild it from your sentence reliably
    • Practice typing it several times

What Happens If You Forget Your Master Password

Important: Heimlane uses zero-knowledge encryption. We never have access to your master password or vault data.

If you forget your master password:

  • There is no password reset - we cannot recover your data
  • You must delete your account and start over
  • All vault data will be permanently lost

To help prevent this:

  • Set up a Password Hint (Settings > Account > Master password hint)
  • Write down your master password and store it in a physical safe
  • Consider setting up Emergency Access for a trusted person

Tips

  • Never share your master password with anyone, including Heimlane support
  • Never enter your master password on any site except vault.heimlane.io
  • Change your master password immediately if you suspect it’s been compromised
  • Use a password hint that only makes sense to you

Troubleshooting

Issue: I entered my password but it says incorrect Solution: Master passwords are case-sensitive. Check Caps Lock. Try typing it in a text editor first to verify.

Issue: I forgot my password hint Solution: Request your hint at the login page by clicking “Get master password hint.” It will be emailed to you.

← Back to Vault Help