Why You Should Avoid Using Public WiFi

Table of Contents

• Public WiFi: An Intro
• The Dangers of Public WiFi 
• How To Maintain Data Security When Using Public WiFi
• Why You Should Avoid Using Public WiFi

Public WiFi: An Intro

When you are outside in public places like restaurants, hotels, coffee shops, malls, and libraries, there are many benefits apart from interacting with other people and enjoying the ambience of these locations. One significant advantage of being in these places is that you can connect to the available public WiFi systems there and use Internet data for free. Everyone loves a freebie: the idea of streaming music, downloading large work documentation files, watching high-quality videos on social media apps, etc at no costs sounds amazing for the average Internet user.

Public WiFi networks are WiFi hotspot networks made available in public places that allow people within the locations to connect to other networks and access the Internet. The main difference between public WiFi and your private wireless connection is that there are fewer restrictions on public WiFi networks. This means that anyone within the area can pretty much use a public WiFi hotspot and using public WiFi is often associated with security breaches on the Internet. Public WiFi may be free and easy to use in most cases, but it may cost you more in the long run.

The Dangers of Public WiFi

Public WiFi comes with its dangers: you do not know who set up the network or if the network has security measures set in place. This means that if you connect to a public WiFi hotspot and login to your social media account or your bank apps, cybercriminals can easily take advantage of the insecure network and access your confidential data. This works by sniffing and spoofing, a tactic in which cybercriminals buy special software kits and devices to eavesdrop on WiFi signals. They can see everything you do online, including log in details and transactions. You can lose your social media accounts, money, and sensitive data when you use these public WiFi networks. If you are a cryptocurrency wallet user and you enter in your key phrases or passcodes while using public WiFi, your wallet can be cloned and hacked. This could mean a loss of your valuable cryptocurrency tokens: imagine losing a load of BTC or ETH after using public WiFi.

Encryption, a feature on secure networks that prevents messages from being intercepted by other users on a network by encoding user data, is not guaranteed on public WiFi networks. This means that you are vulnerable to man-in-the-middle attacks where your attacker is between you and the server, and you are unaware. Your credit card information, traffic and log in details can then be obtained by cybercriminals for fraudulent purposes. Loans can be taken on your behalf and your social media handles can be impersonated. Data packages can also be manipulated and malware can be installed on your device. This malware serves the purpose of snooping on your data and manipulating your browsing traffic without your knowledge. The malicious lines of code are designed to run and snoop around your data after the attacker may have gained access to the user credentials on the site you visited using the public WiFi network.

How To Maintain Data Security When Using Public WiFi

On some days, using your Internet data plans outside may be difficult, especially when network connection is poor: then public WiFi networks may be helpful for you to use. You must always remember that no Public WiFi network is completely safe on any device, be it a phone, tablet or laptop.

Use trusted and popular networks: confirm the name and IP address of the network at the cafe, restaurant, mall or library from staff. It is important to do your research because some cybercriminals create fake Public WiFi networks with the intention of obtaining user data illegally for fraudulent purposes. Do not connect to unknown and unverified Public WiFi hotspots. Remove any settings on your device that enable you to connect to any WiFi network. In addition, whenever you use a Public WiFi network, use a VPN for better encryption. This will serve as protection for your data and make you less vulnerable to attacks.

As a standard safety measure for Public WiFi networks, do not log in to access personal or financial information. You should also log in to only encrypted sites: for example, log into sites that start with "https" instead of "http". Immediately after using these public WiFi networks, log out from your accounts. It is important to also know that you must not use the same passwords for different accounts. This is because if there is an attack from one site, the attacker can easily duplicate your passwords and access multiple accounts. Your browser can be a good indicator for identifying malicious sites: heed such warnings and immediately exit such sites. You can also install security software and browser plugins to protect you from these malicious websites. Examples of the security software you can use are Kaspersky, Cisco, Norton, etc. Good plugins you can use are Force-TLS and HTTPS-Everywhere: they are available for free on Firefox. These software and plugins will make your browser use encryption on popular non-encrypted sites, saving you from security breaches.

Why You Should Avoid Using Public WiFi

In my opinion, despite all these efforts to safely use Public WiFi networks, no public WiFi hotspot is fully secure. In 2017, a Norton WiFi risk report revealed that 59% of respondents admitted to using WiFi to log into their email accounts. A whopping 56% of this population used WiFi to log into their social media accounts. This goes to show that many people use WiFi to access personal data. For many people, WiFi access is so important and they are willing to give up information like email addresses and social media handles just to get access to these networks.

As a cryptocurrency token holder, WiFi security is very important for token safety. Any lapse in WiFi security can give cybercriminals access to your cryptocurrency wallet and you may lose your tokens. In October 2017, such a lapse was discovered in the WiFi Protected Access protocol used by routers. The result was that sensitive information, including the private keys of user wallets were available for cybercriminals. This is why you should take all the necessary precautions if you access your cryptocurrency wallet on public WiFi and avoid public WiFi as a cryptocurrency holder.

Another option for maximum wallet security is to use a hardware wallet that you can carry about in public without fear of cybercriminals stealing your tokens. The hardware wallet does not connect to the internet, so you can connect the wallet to your computer while using public WiFi. Your sensitive data will not be shared with your computer and you can always verify transactions on your physical device. However, you should not store your private keys, passwords or recovery phrases in a file on your devices. This is because such sensitive data can easily be intercepted by cybercriminals on public WiFi networks.

People use WiFi for checking their emails, working remotely, and logging onto social media accounts. You can imagine the amount of sensitive personal and company data exposed to breaches on public WiFi networks. The level of awareness about the dangers associated with using these public WiFi networks is low. The usage of public WiFi networks, no matter how controlled, gives gaps for data breaches.

If you ask me, I think it's better to carry along a WiFi device, your mobile device, and connect to your own hotspot when you are in public. You never can tell which public WiFi network is secure or the intentions of the individual who set up the network. On some occasions, these networks are set up by business owners who want convenience for their clients, but you cannot guarantee how secure the networks are. Stay safe and guard your device's WiFi settings: not every hotspot connection is good for you.