The truth about ‘unsecure’ WiFi networks
The truth about ‘unsecure’ WiFi networks
As more of us decide to work out of the office in locations such as coffee shops, trains and shared work spaces, it’s important to know more about securing your data.
Do you know how safe your information is when you join unsecure WiFi networks? Well, the truth comes down to how diligent you are and what you do when you use them.
Open networks can be set up or accessed by hackers and ‘snoopers’ who try to access your personal information such as passwords, bank details or confidential files to use against you.
We’ve asked IT experts their best practices for using public WiFi:
- Be cautious, does the open network you’re joining look legitimate? If you’re on public premises, check with a member of staff that it’s their network before joining.
- Where you can, always connect to your virtual private network (VPN), this will encrypt everything on your device when you’re not in the office.
- When you don’t have VPN access, try to only use encrypted sites. These can be identified by looking for a padlock symbol and ‘https’ in the website address.
- Refrain from entering passwords, or visiting banking apps or websites when on an unsecure network, even if the padlock is shown on their website address (URL).
- Turn your devices off from automatically connecting to WiFi networks, this prevents your device from connecting to a hacker’s fake network.
- Switch your Bluetooth off when you’re not using it, this prevents hackers from communicating with your device without your consent.
- If you’re sharing sensitive information, use encrypted apps like our eve product to prevent hackers accessing your personal information.
- Where possible, always opt for using your mobile data instead of unsecure WiFi networks. Data packages come at a great price and offer a much more stable, quick and protected connection.
- Remember to always be physically aware too. There has been an increase in the amount of people having their devices stolen from right in front of them, so keep an eye out for anything suspicious.
To find out more about what we have to offer, call one of our experts on 0121-296 0410.