Windows has a protected password vault where it can store your secret passwords so you don’t have to always enter them manually in Internet Explorer or Edge.
If you get used to automated password managers, you may occasionally forget the original passwords. Here is a super simple PowerShell way to dump all of your passwords stored in the Windows password vault:
# important: this is required to load the assembly [Windows.Security.Credentials.PasswordVault,Windows.Security.Credentials,ContentType=WindowsRuntime] (New-Object Windows.Security.Credentials.PasswordVault).RetrieveAll() | ForEach-Object { $_.RetrievePassword() $_ } | Select-Object -Property Username, Password, Resource | Out-GridView
Note that you won’t get any results if you never stored credentials in Internet Explorer or Edge. Note also that this code works as designed: you and only you can retrieve the passwords, just as if you were visiting a website in your browser and asking the browser to fill in your credentials for you.
Dumping all stored passwords illustrates why it is so important to always lock your machine when you are away. Anyone could run this PowerShell code to dump your personal passwords if you leave your machine unattended.
