Proton Pass is one of the youngest yet best password managers on the market, already catching up with industry veterans like 1Password and BitWarden. Now, the company wants to make its free password manager even more useful, while also adding some extra features for premium subscribers.
At its most basic level, Proton Pass is completely free for all users. This gives you a truly competitive password manager that now has access to the new Pass Monitor and Password Health feature, which will tell you if your passwords are weak or reused. The password manager is even able to recognize if your account doesn't have 2FA (two-factor authentication), and you can then activate it without leaving the app or website. Proton says these checks are also done on-device and none of your private data is sent over the internet.
This new update also brings Proton Pass more in line with some of its biggest competitors. 1Password is another popular manager I've used for years, and it offers similar functionality but requires a monthly subscription. Other options, such as LastPass, offer a free plan, but some people may be reluctant to choose that option due to recent data breaches.
There's also Bitwarden, which also offers a free plan and has received glowing recommendations before. However, Bitwarden's security reports require a paid subscription, which costs $10 per year.
In contrast, Proton Pass avoids locking in core features with a monthly subscription. Instead, those who purchase the Pass Plus plan for $1.99 per month (or those who subscribe to Proton Unlimited) get a suite of bonus features. The latest of these is real-time dark web monitoring, a feature released today that will alert you if any of your email addresses or other private information has been leaked onto the dark web.
This new feature works in conjunction with Proton Mail’s recently released dark web monitoring capabilities. Advanced users also have access to Proton Sentinel, a system designed to help prevent account takeovers even if someone manages to steal your Proton login details. Since its launch in August 2023, Sentinel has prevented more than 15,000 account takeovers, the company said.
"Pass Monitor allows users to assess the security posture of their online credentials and immediately alerts if data has been compromised," said Proton Product Director Son Nguyen, providing a proactive way to protect your important accounts and private information.
