Watch out for Public WiFi Networks

In this article, What we give away when we log on to a public Wi-Fi network, the author works with a white-hat hacker to find out what he can learn about users in a cafe with public WiFi. The answer will astound you.

For example:

• In 20 minutes, he knew where everyone else was born, what schools they attended, and the last five things they googled.
• We learn that Joris had previously visited McDonald’s, probably spent his vacation in Spain, and had been kart-racing.
• We see that one visitor has the gay dating app Grindr installed on his smartphone.
• We also see that someone’s phone is attempting to connect to a server in Russia, sending the password along with it, which we are able to intercept.
• In less than 20 minutes, here’s what we’ve learned about the woman sitting 10 feet from us: where she was born, where she studied and that she has an interest in yoga.
• Within 20 minutes he’s obtained the login details, including passwords for my Live.com, SNS Bank, Facebook, and DigiD accounts.

So, how can you be safe?  Read How to safely use a public Wi-Fi network.