Whether you are grabbing a coffee down at the Beachmere waterfront or waiting at a local medical center, you’ll often see “Free Public Wi-Fi” pop up on your phone. While convenient, open networks carry hidden risks.
The “Evil Twin” Attack
Scammers can set up a tiny, portable hotspot and name it something believable, like “Beachmere_Guest_WiFi.” If you connect to it, everything you type—including passwords or email contents—can flow right through the hacker’s device.
How to Use it Safely
Public Wi-Fi is perfectly fine for reading the news or checking the weather. However, never log into your internet banking, access your MyGov account, or type in a credit card number while connected to a public network. Save those tasks for your secure home internet.
Turn off “Auto-Join”
Our smartphones are lazy; they love to automatically connect to any saved network they recognize. Go into your Wi-Fi settings and turn off “Auto-Join” for public networks. This ensures your phone only connects when you explicitly tell it to.
