Why Do Not We Use Password Managers? A Study on the Intention to Use Password Managers

Abstract

Why don't individuals follow the best information security practices? We address an aspect of this question by focusing on one of the most common authentication methods – passwords. To promote better password habits, security experts consistently recommend the use of password managers as a best practice, but recent research shows their usage rate is low. Therefore, understanding the factors that influence the use of a password manager is important. We contribute to this cause by drawing on information security and technology adoption literature. Survey results from 120 participants with varying numbers of internet accounts yield some counterintuitive findings. As proposed, perceived severity and perceived vulnerability of password loss strongly influenced intent to use password managers. However, perceived ease of use diminished the intent to use password managers, and trust is only partially supported. Our results indicate that 'security' aspects of password managers are more important than 'usability' aspects. The implications of these findings for password management are discussed.