Posted by Calnotary on 12/12/05 11:12am
Msg #81929

WiFi to download docs in free hotspots.

Is it safe to do that? And if you get unlimited wireless access from your verizon wireless for
example is still safe for me to download docs?

thank you guys.

Reply by Charles_Ca on 12/12/05 11:33am
Msg #81933

I find that if you use the proper security procedures you should have no problems. It is necessary to remember that if you set up the WiFi conections without security frequently it gives access to others on the network. I use Zone Alarm and it has diffrerent levels of security for different wireless uses. Since I use my laptop for eveything I just set it in what they refer to as "Internet Zone" which prevents anyone from peeking in on your computer.

The information stream has individual packets with specific addresses and so it is much more difficult to capture the information casually from another computer while it is streaming.

Reply by eXpedN_TX on 12/12/05 3:24pm
Msg #81998

If you are going to use WiFi to download docs just know that it is never 100% secure. You can take precautions, (i.e. set up WEP and such), but anything you do over wireless can be tracked by someone else on your frequency. I have wireless at home as well, but whenever I do banking, I turn the wireless off. There are easy little programs that can "sniff" every key stroke you have and from there can be deciphered. I took a network class and you'd be surprised how easy it is to see a password someone types. Hackers know how to do this very easily. The good thing is, most hackers prefer hacking in to something that is well-known. They may not bother with what you are doing in a hotspot, but still, just be careful. There are programs out there that can tell you if someone is trying to hack you. I wrote a small one using Perl programming. But it is very basic. You can look online and see what's offered. Good luck to you! - Melissa

Reply by eXpedN_TX on 12/12/05 3:51pm
Msg #82005

More info on Wifi's vulnerability

http://blog.pinn.net/?p=74

Search google.com for more info.