How do you turn autofill off and on for logins (login id and password)?

i've been evaluating password managers (for Windows/Firefox) prior to adopting one to use. I really like 1Passord but I get some weird results when I test it out. Depending on how I install the browser extension (See below), it will autofill login ids and passwords , or it won't. And I can't find any settings to change this behavior.

I have "Autofill logins and passwords", "Suggest and generate strong passwords", "Ask to save logins and passwords for websites" and "Autofill addresses" turned off in my browser (Firefox - 77.0.1), and I have no saved passwords in Firefox. Just to be sure, I first go to my test sites and make sure nothing else is trying to fill in the login and password information, and nothing is.

I download and install 1Password for Windows (1PasswordSetup-7.4.767.exe ) per these instructions: https://support.1password.com/get-the-apps/ and log into my account.

Then I follow the instructions here https://support.1password.com/getting-started-windows/ to create my first saved login.

I try to install the browser extension from here https://1password.com/browsers/firefox/ but get a "The add-on could not be downloaded because of a connection failure." I Google this error and a 1Password web page advises me to download and install the Firefox browser extension manually. I find the xml file here https://app-updates.agilebits.com/product_history/OPX4 , so I download the latest version (4.7.5) and install it by going to Add-Ons in Firefox and dragging and dropping the downloaded file (1Password-4.7.5.90.xpi) onto the add-ons page. The add-on installs without problems.

OK. Back to the Windows desktop app. I double click my new login entry, and it takes me to the login page in my browser, fills in the id and password, and logs me in. Same thing if I select the entry in the browser extension menu. I check out settings in both the desktop app and the browser extension and don't see anywhere to turn off autofill, although I can turn off auto login by editing the Submit setting in the new login entry's properties.

I then remove the 1Password browser add-in and re-install it, except this time I install it from a different 1Password web page that I found ( https://1password.com/downloads/windows/ ) by clicking Install under the Firefox icon in the Download 1Password X section. The installation works fine from this page and prompts me to sign into my account, which I do.

OK. Back to the Windows desktop app, again. Now when I double click my new entry, it takes me to the login page in my browser, but now it doesn't autofill the id and password. When I click in the id field, it shows the name of my new entry in a drop down menu, and when I click on it, it autofills the id and password. Interestingly, in this case, it never auto submits to log me in, no matter which of the the Submit settings I choose in the entries properties.

So, it seems that 1Passwords behavior is adjustable. It can either autofill login ids and passwords, or not, and autologon (submit) is available if desired, but only if autofill is working. Are there settings for these options somewhere? i haven't been able to find them.

I tried the above on several websites and the behavior is the same on them all.

Thanks,
Mike


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Comments

  • If you use 1Password X, @Maike13, then autosubmit isn't going to be available. Autosubmit is accomplished by faking an enter press after filling. The desktop app does this and the companion extension (the first one you tried) integrates with the desktop app so that allows for that whole process to happen – open, fill, and submit. 1Password X is its own thing. A browser extension that works all on its own. I personally really like its filling experience. It's really easy to use with the keyboard and the inline menu provides folks like my dad with a great reminder that they have an app to fill those passwords for them. It actually can open and fill (more on that in a bit), but it can't submit.

    Now, technically neither extension autofills. You need to tell 1Password, "Hey, I would like to fill this data on this website" in some fashion or it isn't going to do it. You can read more about the reasoning behind that here, if you're interested. There are, however, a few different ways to tell it to fill for you.

    The one you've been testing out is what we call a "Go & Fill" or "Open & Fill". You double-click the item in your desktop app (or select it in your extension), which 1Password interprets as a request to open the website saved in that Login item in your default browser, fill your username and password, and sign in (if enabled). This can be done in 1Password X as well, but it needs to be initiated from the extension since 1Password X doesn't integrate with the desktop app. To do that, press Ctrl + Shift + X in your browser to open the extension pop-up, find the Login you want to fill, and click the "Go" button (or select it with the arrow keys and press enter). Remember, 1Password X doesn't submit, so you'll need to hit enter after it fills to sign in.

    Both extensions also allow you to tell them to fill when you're already viewing a sign-in page. With the companion extension, you can either click the 1Password icon on your browser's toolbar and select the Login you want to fill (it should suggest those that match the URL you're on) or you can just press Ctrl + . The latter will fill for you right away if there's only one match in your vault for that site. If there's more than one, it will show mini so you can choose which to fill. 1Password X, of course, has that inline menu where you can select a suggestion to fill. You can also fill from the pop-up, if you'd like. Pressing Ctrl + Shift + X will show you suggestions and have a "Fill" button where you saw "Go" before.

    So, autofilling or not isn't controlled by a setting, but instead how you are invoking 1Password. Your choices will dictate that behavior. Autosubmit isn't available in 1Password X, but it can be enabled or disabled in the desktop app when using the companion extension. You can disable autosubmit completely in 1Password > Settings > Browsers by toggling "Automatically sign in after filling usernames and passwords" off. This is actually my preference because I've found enough sites where submitting right away is a problem (curse you CAPTCHAs!) that I prefer it off entirely. If you like having it, but find it causes trouble on certain sites, you can also disable it on a per-Login basis. Edit the Login you want to disable it for, then scroll down close to the bottom where you'll see a dropdown under "Submit". Change that dropdown to "Never submit" and 1Password won't submit your credentials after filling on that specific site moving forward.

    I know this is a lot, but hopefully it clears things up a bit. And, of course, if you have any lingering questions, just let me know. :chuffed:

  • Maike13
    Maike13
    Community Member
    edited June 2020

    Wow. Thanks so much for the very detailed and understandable explanation. I had seen all sorts of conflicting information online about how 1Password handled autofill, perhaps because it's changed over time, or perhaps because some people were using the companion extension while others were using 1Password X. I nearly gave up on 1Password after initially using it with the companion extension, and not being able to turn autofill off. I'm glad I persevered a bit longer.

    I hadn't noticed that the browser extensions were actually different. Am I right in thinking you have to have one of the browser extensions installed, even if 1Password X doesn't integrate with the desktop app? I tried the desktop app before loading either extension, and there was no sign on the login page of any 1Password button or selection to let 1Password input my login and password. Or can you do it with a keyboard shortcut?

    It seems like 1Password have really thought this through and provided a very adaptable solution. I started off being enamored of the autofill/autosubmit feature in password managers, as it seemed to make everything so simple. I had actually started using one of your competitors products, when I began to run across articles mentioning the risks of hidden login fields used by advertisers. Their software doesn't allow one to turn off autofill, although you can fake it out by defining custom fields for the id and password, but that gets a bit clunky. They claim their software won't fall for false hidden login fields, and maybe they're right, but since the fields are hidden, the end user (me) has to take their word for this. I'm afraid I'm not that trusting :-).

    Thanks for the aside about CAPTCHAs. I was wondering why i was seeing more of these recently. I hadn't linked using password managers to seeing more CAPTCHAS (duh) :-).

  • Unless you want to stick to copy/paste, you do need a browser extension of some sort to fill, @Maike13, but which you use really is wholly up to you. You're doing exactly what I'd suggest already – experiment with both and stick with whichever works best for you. It's also your call on the desktop app. You'll need it with the companion extension, of course, but if you go with 1Password X, you can take it or leave it. It doesn't integrate with 1Password X (yet), but it's perfectly happy to exist alongside it. Personally, I'm still pretty attached to my desktop app. I find organizing things and managing Document items easier in the desktop app so I keep it, but I generally prefer 1Password X's filling experience so I use it for my personal use.

    Also, good on you for thinking about hidden forms! I don't know if you were able to read the blog post I linked above, but that's exactly why we've never offered true autofill. We caught a lot of flack for it in the past (still do, truth be told), but we got some small bit of vindication when those forms made the news a while back and it's great to see we've got customers thinking about it too. :chuffed:

    I'm glad you're enjoying 1Password so far and hope that positive trend continues. And, of course, if I can do anything more to help, I'll be here. :+1:

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