One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that facilitates accessing to a plurality of applications that require passwords. When the system receives a request for a password from an application running on a remote computer system, the system first authenticates the request to ensure that it originated from a trusted source. Next, the system uses an identifier for the application to look up the password for the application in a password store, which contains passwords associated with the plurality of applications. If the password exists in the password store, the system sends the password or a function of the password to the application on the remote computer system. Hence, the system creates the illusion that there is a single sign on to a large number of applications, whereas in reality the system automatically provides different passwords to the applications as they are requested. In one embodiment of the present invention, the request for the password includes computer code that when run on the local computer system requests the password on behalf of the application on the remote computer system. In a variation on this embodiment, the computer code is in the form of a JAVA.TM. applet that runs on a JAVA.TM. virtual machine on the local computer system. In one embodiment of the present invention, the JAVA.TM. applet is a signed JAVA.TM. applet, and authenticating the request involves authenticating the JAVA.TM. applet's certificate chain.