How to Send Passwords Securely Online

We’re often in the position of needing to email or text passwords, credit card numbers, and other sensitive data with no way of ensuring the information is completely deleted once it’s been received. One Time Secret, a project currently in beta mode designed by the guys behind Stella, attempts to solve that problem by generating temporary links.

Remember how assignments in Mission Impossible would self-destruct after the agent read them? That’s the idea. (Sort of. It makes you feel cool, at the very least.)

When you visit One Time Secret, you enter the password or whatever information you wish into the box and click “Create a secret link.” The app generates two links for you — one you can share that will display the information, and another you can use to find out when the recipient opened the link. Both of these links are only displayed once, so it’s important to copy them before you leave the page.

The links function for two days, or until they’re viewed, and then they disappear. That’s the free version with anonymous users — for those on the paid plan, the app will hold the data for 30 days. One Time Secret also offers a temporary password option — just select “Generate a unique secret” and the app will provide a password and the two links.

There’s no registration involved with One Time Secret, and it probably adds all of three seconds to the process of sending someone a password, credit card number, or any other secret message. An easy way to add another barrier between yourself and hackers.