Wi-Fi is everywhere – cafes, trains, hotels even some cities. This can be extremely convenient however it can be extremely dangerous! Hopping on free Wi-Fi could expose your business data to cyber criminals. 

Connecting to public Wi-Fi basically means you are opening the door to scammers who know exactly how to exploit these networks. The two biggest threats you need to know about are called;

• Man-in-the-middle (MITM)
• Evil Twin Attacks

Yes, they may sound straight out of a cheesy spy film but they are very real and shouldn’t be dismissed as they can have serious consequences for your business.

Man-in-the-middle attacks:

Imagine this, you are working from a café, and you are in the middle of sending an email or checking the business’ finances. You think your device is communicating directly with the Wi-Fi network. However, in reality a cyber criminal has inserted themselves between you and the network. Thus becoming ‘the man in the middle’. They can see everything you are doing whilst you are connected to the Wi-fi. This includes your passwords, emails, card details and important business data. All this without you even noticing.

The cyber criminals use this information in all kinds of ways. They might sell it to advertisers or impersonate you in a phishing scam or they might go straight for the money and steal it right out of your business account.

Evil Twin Attacks:

Imagine you are in an airport and you decide to connect to the Wi-Fi. You see two network; one called ‘Airport Free Wi-Fi’ and another called ‘Airport Wi-Fi Secure’. They both sound real but one of them could be a fake network that was set up by cyber criminals. If you connect to the fake one, scammers can them monitor everything you do, just like with the MITM attack – but with this on they can go even further. They can steal your cookies (Bits of data that websites use to remember you) and gain access to things such as your login details and personal information. In some cases these criminals can even install malware on your device without you clicking anything. Scary!

Using public Wi-Fi doesn’t have to be a security nightmare, but you should be cautious. Here are a few steps you can do to help keep your business secure:

• Avoid accessing sensitive information while you are connected to public Wi-Fi (including passwords, financial information etc.)
• Stick to websites that use HTTPS, which encrypts your data.
• Turn off ‘auto-join’ on your business devices. This prevents your devices from automatically connecting to available networks.
• Enable two-factor authentication on business accounts whenever possible.
• Keep your devices up to date as these updates often include security patches that help to protect your device.

If you would like any extra help, advice or tips and tricks, get in touch. We would love to help.