Seniorn Online Safety - NCSAM Tip #9 WiFi - Three steps to stay safe when connecting via wireless WiFi: Three steps to stay safe connecting to WiFi.

WiFi – every device we have seems to have a WiFi capability from our smartphones, our tablets and even our vehicles and appliances. When we are on the go, if we aren’t connected via a cellular network (4G/3G) then we are connecting to someone’s WiFi network, like the coffee shop, the mall or even the park where we take the children.  That convenience is duly noted by some who may wish to take advantage of your mobile state and perhaps lower than normal security posture with your mobile device as compared to your office or home devices.  To address this, here are three very simple steps which you should follow to connect and connect safely.

1.   When connecting to public networks only use networks you know (criminals have been known to set up in proximity to heavily populated areas and put out an open WiFi connection such as “Free WiFi Tuesday” and then capture all of the data which connects through their device).

2.  When you do connect, never enter userid and password for a site which is not using Secure Sockets Layer encryption (also known as SSL).  To enable such you connection must be via HTTPS (The S stands for secure).

3.  Keep your WiFi settings on your device to manual connection to networks.  In this manner you do not inadvertently connect to a network you are unfamiliar or is untrusted.

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