CopyBuffer

How to keep copied passwords out of clipboard history

Updated

Where a copied password can end up

  • A clipboard manager's history, saved to disk, sometimes for months.
  • Your iPhone and iPad. With Universal Clipboard, what you copy on a Mac can be pasted on a nearby device signed in to the same Apple Account, when Handoff is on.
  • Any app that reads the clipboard while the password is still on it.
  • A screen recording or share, if a window shows it.

What macOS and password managers give you

  • Turn off Universal Clipboard. In System Settings ▸ General ▸ AirDrop & Handoff (AirDrop & Continuity on macOS Tahoe 26), turn off Allow Handoff between this Mac and your iCloud devices. There's no separate switch for the clipboard, so this turns off all of Handoff.
  • Concealed copies. Many password managers mark the passwords they copy with a "concealed" type (the org.nspasteboard.ConcealedType convention). Clipboard managers that honor it don't save those copies. Not every app follows it, in either direction.
  • Auto-clear. Many password managers clear the clipboard after a set time.

How CopyBuffer handles passwords

  • Concealed copies are never recorded. Copies marked concealed or transient are skipped, whatever your settings.
  • Password managers are excluded by default: Keychain Access, Passwords, 1Password, Bitwarden, KeePassXC and Proton Pass. Add any other app in Settings ▸ Excluded apps.
  • Recording on your terms. From the menu bar menu: Pause recording for 15 minutes, 1 hour or until you resume, Don’t record next copy, or Don’t record copies from ‘…’ for the app in front.
  • Vault passwords stay on this Mac. When CopyBuffer's own vault pastes or copies a password, user name or one-time code, it puts it on the clipboard for this Mac only, so Universal Clipboard doesn't send it to your iPhone or iPad. It is also marked concealed, put back to your previous clipboard 1 second after pasting, and cleared 20 seconds after copying.
  • ⌃⌘C for passwords you see. Select a password or API key on screen and press ⌃⌘C to put it straight into the vault without going through the clipboard. If you already copied it, CopyBuffer takes the copy and removes it from the clipboard and from the history.

If a password got recorded anyway

Press ⌘⇧V, find the item, and press ⌘⌫ to delete it. To wipe everything except pinned items, use Clear history (except pinned)… in the menu bar menu.

Limits

  • A password you copy by hand from a web page, a chat or a terminal is an ordinary copy. CopyBuffer records it unless you skip that copy, pause recording or use ⌃⌘C.
  • While a password is on the clipboard, other apps can read it. Short clear times help, but don't remove that.
  • Turning off Handoff also turns off its other features, such as continuing a task on another device.
  • CopyBuffer's vault is for one Mac. It doesn't sync, autofill in browsers or share with a team.

FAQ

Does Universal Clipboard send my passwords to my iPhone?

It can. Anything you copy on a Mac with Handoff on is available to paste on your nearby devices, unless the app copies it for this Mac only. CopyBuffer's vault copies passwords for this Mac only.

Does CopyBuffer record passwords I copy from 1Password or Bitwarden?

No. Their copies are marked concealed, and those apps are excluded by default as well.

How do I remove a password that was already recorded?

Open the list with ⌘⇧V, select the item and press ⌘⌫. Clear History (Keep Pinned)… in the menu bar menu removes everything except pinned items.