Wi-Fi in airports, hotels, coffee shops and other public places may be convenient, but they're often not secure. Individuals with malicious intent may establish free Wi-Fi networks to eavesdrop on your connection to steal your credentials, financial or other sensitive information, or to inject malware.
Wisdom When Using Wi-Fi
To minimize the risk:
Verify that the Wi-Fi hotspot you’re using is fully encrypted by looking for the lock in the lower status bar or “https” in the URL, noting the “s” for security.
Only submit personal information through websites that you know are fully encrypted.
If you think you’re logged in to a secure site, but discover it’s an un-encrypted page, log out immediately.
Encryption
There are three types of encryption that are commonly used by Wi-Fi networks:
WPA - protects your information against common hacking programs
WPA2 - offers stronger protection of your information against common hacking programs
WEP - may not offer these protections. When in doubt, assume the connection is not secure
Avoid high risk behavior
Convenience now may result in hassles later. Staying permanently signed-in to an account or using the same password on many different sites increases your vulnerability. It is recommended to:
Log out when you finish using an account.
Create different passwords for each account, so multiple accounts will not be compromised if one account is breached.
