[Tip] How to Disable “Show Password” Button in Windows 8, Windows 10 and Internet Explorer

UPDATE: This tutorial will also work in Windows 10 operating system.

Today we are going to share an interesting tip which will help you in disabling a new feature introduced in Windows 8 and Internet Explorer 10 and also present in Windows 8.1 and Internet Explorer 11.

This feature is called “Password Reveal Button” or “Show Password Button“. You might have noticed that whenever you try to enter a password at login screen or other places in Windows 8 and 8.1, the password field shows a small icon at the right-side which looks like a human eye. If you click and hold on this icon, you can see the actual password. This eye icon is called password reveal button which replaces the asterisks in password field with actual characters.

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Reveal_Password_Button_Windows_8.png

The same feature has also been implemented in Internet Explorer 10 and 11 versions which are already present in Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 respectively and can also be installed in Windows 7 and Server 2012 R2 operating systems. When you open a website in Internet Explorer 10 or 11 versions which requires you to enter a password such as Gmail, Hotmail, etc, Internet Explorer shows the same password reveal button in password field to show the actual characters of password.

Password_Reveal_Button_Internet_Explorer.png

It might sound a useful feature but many people don’t like it. It might become a security risk if someone accidentally or intentionally clicks on the button when you are typing the password. The person will immediately know your password and you’ll need to change your password even if you didn’t want to change it.

If you don’t like this feature and want to get rid of password reveal button, this tutorial will definitely help you.

Today in this tutorial we’ll tell you a few methods to remove password reveal button from Internet Explorer 10, 11 and Windows 8/8.1 operating systems.

So without wasting time lets start the tutorial. There are 2 ways to disable this password reveal button:

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  • Disable password reveal button in the whole Windows 8/8.1 OS which will automatically disable it in Internet Explorer 10/11 versions as well.
  • Disable password reveal button in Internet Explorer 10/11 only which will not disable the button in other areas of Windows 8/8.1 OS.

First method will work in Windows 8/8.1 only but the second method will work in Windows 7, Server 2012 R2, Windows 8 and Windows 8.1.

METHOD 1: Disable Password Reveal Button in Windows 8 and 8.1

This method will disable password reveal button in Windows 8/8.1 along with Internet Explorer 10/11 versions. It’ll not work in Windows 7 or Server 2008 R2 OS.

You can disable the button either using Group Policy Editor (gpedit.msc) or using Registry Editor (regedit).

A: Using Group Policy Editor (gpedit.msc):

1. Press “WIN+R” key combination to launch RUN dialog box, then type gpedit.msc and press Enter. It’ll open Group Policy Editor.

2. Now go to:

Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Credential User Interface

3. In right-side pane, double-click on “Do not display the password reveal button” option and set its value to “Enabled“.

Remove_Password_Reveal_Button_Windows_8.png

That’s it. It’ll immediately disable the password reveal button in entire OS including Internet Explorer. If you want to enable the button again in future, change the value to “Disabled” or “Not Configured“.

B: Using Registry Editor (regedit):

1. Type regedit in RUN dialog box and press Enter. It’ll open Registry Editor.

2. Now go to following key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\CredUI

If you can’t find “CredUI” key, you’ll need to create it manually.

3. In right-side pane, create a new DWORD DisablePasswordReveal and set its value to 1

Disable_Password_Reveal_Button_Windows_8.png

It’ll disable the password reveal button everywhere in Windows 8/8.1 OS including Internet Explorer. In future if you want to enable the button again, either delete the DWORD or change its value to 0

METHOD 2: Disable Password Reveal Button in Internet Explorer 10 and 11

This method will work in Windows 7, Server 2008 R2, Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 operating systems. It’ll disable password reveal button in Internet Explorer only.

Again you can disable the button using both Group Policy Editor (gpedit.msc) as well as Registry Editor (regedit).

A: Using Group Policy Editor (gpedit.msc):

1. Press “WIN+R” key combination to launch RUN dialog box, then type gpedit.msc and press Enter. It’ll open Group Policy Editor.

2. Now go to:

Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Internet Explorer -> Security Features

3. In right-side pane, double-click on “Do not display the reveal password button” option and set its value to “Enabled“.

Remove_Password_Reveal_Button_Internet_Explorer.png

That’s it. It’ll immediately disable the password reveal button in Internet Explorer 10 and 11 versions. If you want to enable the button again in future, change the value to “Disabled” or “Not Configured“.

B: Using Registry Editor (regedit):

1. Type regedit in RUN dialog box and press Enter. It’ll open Registry Editor.

2. Now go to following key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main

3. In right-side pane, create a new DWORD DisablePasswordReveal and set its value to 1

Disable_Password_Reveal_Button_Internet_Explorer.png

It’ll disable the password reveal button in Internet Explorer only. In future if you want to enable the button again, either delete the DWORD or change its value to 0

IMPORTANT NOTE

Above mentioned all methods will disable password reveal button for all Windows users. If you want to disable the button only for a single user, use following locations instead:

For Group Policy Editor:

User Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Credential User Interface
User Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Internet Explorer -> Security Features

For Registry Editor:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\CredUI
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main

That’s all. Feel free to share your feedback and comments with us…

Published in: Internet Explorer, Troubleshooting Guides, Windows 10, Windows 8

About the author: Vishal Gupta (also known as VG) has been awarded with Microsoft MVP (Most Valuable Professional) award. He holds Masters degree in Computer Applications (MCA). He has written several tech articles for popular newspapers and magazines and has also appeared in tech shows on various TV channels.

Comments

NOTE: Older comments have been removed to reduce database overhead.

  1. …interesting… and for the rest of us not concerned with boring stuff like security – is there also a way to constantly reveal passwords?

  2. This cool feature is a headache for most of the people , specially when you are logging on to your facebook account and your friends are arround. Thanks VG for sharing this awesome tutorial.

  3. I think those of you that found this article and think that remove the reveal password option is a good idea are mistaken for the following reasons:
    1) A major reason people choose simple, instead of complex passwords, is because they cannot see what they are typing to confirm it is correct, thus they need a simple password.
    2) Hacking software, at least 99% of it, does not “see” your screen. Hacking software on your pc sees the real value behind the asterisks anyway, so providing the human sitting at the monitor to also have the ability to easily see the password is not a security risk.
    3) The feature is a risk when people are looking over your shoulder. If people are looking over your shoulder, I recommend that you do not click on the eyeball to reveal your password. That solves the problem.
    4) The real risk to the feature is when you leave your computer unattended, and you let the browser store your passwords. Someone can open a site you go to, and reveal the password you have stored there. You really should not let the browser store your password. Not only can humans then log in as you if you leave your computer unattended, but code that hacks the browser can also read all of your browser passwords.

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