Wi-fi Hotspots – zones that offer free wireless internet connections – are almost impossible to avoid these days in larger cities, popping up in cafes, airports and train stations.<\/p>\n
But just because the internet connection is freely available doesn’t mean users shouldn’t take some precautions to protect their personal data.<\/p>\n
“Every time I use wi-fi, I have to ask myself who’s behind it,” says Frank Timmermann of the Institute for Internet Security at Germany’s Westphalian University of Applied Sciences.<\/p>\n
“That’s because I’m just connecting myself with an access point that uses a given name and a Mac address.”<\/p>\n
The problem with that relative simplicity is that any router owner can pick any name for his network. A network that sounds like it’s run by a city authority might just be a private one. And that someone could be a person capturing data traffic for his own ends.<\/p>\n
That risk is one good reason to only send information with encrypted connections, which can be recognized by a web address that begins with “https” and had an icon of a padlock in the address bar.<\/p>\n
But that’s not always an option. Apps don’t offer this kind of security. “With those, I don’t know if I’m communicating with encryption.”<\/p>\n
The same problems can pop up in one’s home network, he adds. While data on a public network can be snatched before it reaches the router, any information sent to any router – even one’s own – can’t have its safety guaranteed once the router sends it on.<\/p>\n
“I don’t know what comes after the router, who’s sitting on the line,” says Timmermann.<\/p>\n
Another problem with a public wi-fi network is that other users can take advantage of it to attack other computers. That means leaving drives and files unprotected – which is convenient when working in one’s home network – should not be an option when out and about.<\/p>\n
“Your computer should be set up for basic protection anyway,” advises Timmermann. That means a virus scanner and a firewall, as well as up-to-date software.<\/p>\n
Also check the terms of any open network you use. Some are only free for a certain time, others are only accessible once users give up personal information. That can be risky, says Timmermann.<\/p>\n
“If I first have to provide my email address to get into an open wi-fi network, then I’m easier to identify,” he says. “And a potential attacker will always be happy if I just give up personal information that way.”<\/p>\n
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