Asterisks Password Viewer

CNET Editors' review

by: CNET staff on January 12, 2009

This password display app is a little thin, and it's not entirely because of the partial transparency of the interface. Asterisks Password Viewer's simple dialog-sized interface is inexplicably semitransparent. There really isn't a need for the interface at all, but there is no reason to make it ghostly or to not let the user choose his or her preference.

In a common case of shareware name following function, Asterisks Password Viewer displays system passwords obscured by asterisks. Simply drag its magnifying glass icon over a protected password to reveal the true characters. Of course, the demo only reveals the first three characters, but the partial passwords were correct in our tests.

That's the full extent of the application. It cannot reveal passwords stored on the Web, or passwords protected by other means. Much support is given to updating the app with one button to check and another to configure automatic updates. If only there was a method to give the interface a solid background.

Users needing to reveal asterisk protected passwords should give Asterisks Password Viewer a test. There are numerous such apps on the market, and this one works as well as any, despite its ghostly look.

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Publisher's Description

From Keylack Software:

Asterisks Password Viewer allows you to see the actual password hidden behind the asterisks. Windows stores your frequently used passwords, such as the passwords in Outlook Express email or for an FTP connection. But since you no longer enter the saved passwords manually, you often tend to forget them. The password is staring right at you, but it's hiding behind a row of asterisks - ****.

This feature is intended to protect your passwords; but sometimes this feature becomes more of a nuisance, rather than a benefit. Asterisks Password Viewer is a program that lets you see the actual password behind the asterisks. It recovers passwords in programs such as Microsoft Outlook or Outlook Express, The BAT and other e-mail clients, FTP clients such as CuteFTP, FlashFXP. Supports password recovery in Microsoft Windows Internet Explorer.

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