Keeping track of passwords, logins, and account information can be an overwhelming task. Apple's Keychain Access does a fine job of tracking most of that data for you, but sometimes it just isn't enough. That's when it's time to bring in the heavy hitters - like Koingo's Data Guardian.

Data Guardian is a configurable password, contact and information manager. It uses 448-bit Blowfish encryption to keep your private stuff private, supports working with multiple databases, and even synchronizes with Keychain so you can manage your passwords in Data Guardian, but let your Mac auto-fill logins in Safari.

Data Guardian's record list.

If you want just a single piece of info from a record, you can grab it by control-clicking on the record name and choosing the field you want to copy from a contextual menu. That feature is a real time saver for me.

Data Guardian lets you create the fields you need for your database records, including fields like login name, password, URL, phone number, and notes. It can also track contacts, so it includes a photo field, too. Not sure what fields you really want to include? Not a problem - just start with one of the included templates. Options for contacts, passwords and serial numbers are included, and you can build your own. If you need to change the fields in a group of entries, you can do that, too, thanks to the Bulk Edit feature.

You can choose which records sync with Keychain.

Records can be placed in groups so you don't have to scroll through a long list if entries. I use this feature to keep the various logins I need for The Mac Observer separate from my personal accounts. Records categories are customizable, too. For example, you might want to include a phone number field in the records for a Tech Support Site category, but not in a News Web Site category.

The standard password record template.

If you want to further organize your entries, Data Guardian also supports record-by-record color labels, and lets you sort your lists based on any of the record fields.

Your records are only as secure as the database they are in, so Data Guardian does what it can to help there, too. It includes preference options to clear your clipboard at regular intervals, and re-lock your database after a period of inactivity. You can also turn on the activity log to keep an audit trail of your password activity.

Although Data Guardian's integration with Keychain is great, I wish it could auto-fill all of my forms without going through the synchronization step. Occasionally, pop-up menus were a bit sluggish to appear, too. Both only minor issues, especially considering all of the other great features this app has.

The Bottom Line
Data Guardian is a flexible and powerful tool for managing your personal information. It syncs with Keychain, so you don't have to give up Mac OS X's built-in auto-fill feature, and it lets you organize your passwords and login information more effectively than Keychain Access. This is one application I rely on every day.