RV park's Wi-Fi

[deee2]

We are fairly new to using the internet on our travels.. my question is this. I have a good security suite and 'transaction protection' on keyboard strokes for my browser. I have been using 'unsecure' connections for basic email and browsing. Is this safe to do? What about paying bills? Would it be advised we go to a library or wherever to pay for a secure site?

Thanks for any information!

Donna

 

[jmgratz]

I am a believer to use all the security you can all of the time. I never use a wi-fi connection without the firewall turned on. I would rather be safer than sorry. There was a post on this very subject eariler. I will try to find it, meanwhile check out the forum for internet security.

 

[jmgratz]

I found it...check out this link....//heartlandowners.org/showthread.php?t=6670&highlight=wifi+secuirty
I think this will help answer your question..

 

[AlexSian]

a firewall protects you and your computer from threats coming AT you.
a firewall does nothing to ensure your financial transaction is secure.

in order to connect to the internet via wifi, someone has to make a wireless access point available to you. some of those are unsecured/open hotspots, and some of them are secured and provided by the campground you may be visiting.

in either case, you are not directly connecting to your financial institution and its quite possible that the "man in the middle" who provides the hotspot is maliciously capturing your information.

what can you do to ensure you are safe? first of all, always make sure you are using an https:// connection to whatever site you are giving up financial information (or any kind of info you want to secure. even addresses and such)

an https:// connection, instead of plain old http:// means that at least your communication to/from the website is 'encrypted'... however...

"Encrypted" does NOT automatically mean "safe"!

Anyone can operate a site with SSL that provides an https connection to encrypt traffic to and from their server.

But the players that are operating that SSL server may NOT be who you think it is .

Here's an excerpt from an article worth reading :

what’s the difference between “encrypted” and “safe”? It turns out that it’s not actually that hard to set up a site that will get your browser to display a padlock. In fact, it’s easy enough that essentially anyone can do it, including bad guys who are just out to steal your credit card info, identity, and whatever else they can get. So the padlock means “encrypted” but doesn’t say anything about the validity of the domain, nor about the identity of the people at the other end of the encrypted connection.

Every bank in the world had better be able to validate themselves to the maximum level of scrutiny. when i want to connect to my bank of america account or my paypal account, i absolutely look for the "green" in my firefox browser to ensure i am connected to who i want to be.

FYI, 3Gstore is one of very few vendors who have gone through the extended validation process to achieve the highest level of security, similar to that of Paypal. In fact, to our knowledge, no other site that sells the products we do, has ever demonstrated the same level of security that 3Gstore maintains.

For more on EVSSL, feel free to read the article we have at http://www.EVDOinfo.com/EVSSL

 

[DougLynne]

I still have a question? I talked to a gal who is a Network Adminitrator and she said she would NEVER use WiFi because their could always be someone out there that could come in and download a key stroke capture code and your hooped. As I understand that is even if you have anti-virus software etc. Can anyone clarify?..../Doug

 

[AlexSian]

...she said she would NEVER use WiFi

to me, thats too broad a statement. for instance, i have a DSL connection at home, and i use a wifi router to allow me to move around with laptop.

i use WAP encryption to secure my connection to my wifi router, and then ensure that i only use https connections to my bank's website, and that firefox shows me 'green' to indicate the https site i am connected to, is really my bank.

so i'd amend her statement to say: "never use any public unencrypted wifi hotspot to do banking or transmit anything you want secret, and try to deal only with sites that validate themselves to the fullest"

many RVers have friends who use "high powered wifi antennas" that can pull in 10-20 "open hotspots" that they will use, free of charge.

first of all, using someone's open hotspot just because its open, is against the law. you can only use a wifi hotspot when explicitly given permission to do so. someone stupid enough to run an open hotspot, is not giving you permission to use it, just because its open.

if you DO choose to take advantage of open wifi hotspots, i'd certainly suggest you never do anything on that connection, that you want others to find out about, because it could be a trap to gain your personal info.

 

[jmgratz]

I didn't know it is against the law to use an open wifi connection that doesn't say you have permission. What law and where is it, I want to read it.

 

[AlexSian]

I didn't know it is against the law to use an open wifi connection that doesn't say you have permission. What law and where is it, I want to read it.

this is the basis of my opinion:

Laws regarding "unauthorized access of a computer network" exist in many locales, including the U.S. federal government, all 50 U.S. states, and other countries, though the wording and meaning differ from one to the next
​

Its an excerpt from this wikipedia page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legality_of_piggybacking#United_States

note that i am not a lawyer, nor do i play one on tv.

 

[truknutt]

Hey guys,

This is one of those topics that's all over the board! Bearing in mind that we have forum members from multiple countries, I believe that it's important not to make general statements regarding legal issues.

Quoted from the same Wikipedia article referenced earlier:

"Canada: In Canadian law, unauthorized access is addressed by Section 342.1 of the Criminal Code of Canada. According to Section 342.1, "Every one who, fraudulently and without colour of right" obtains "computer services" from an access point is subject to criminal charges. (See Criminal Code of Canada, RSC 1985, c. C-46, s. 342.1 (1) (a))

United States: Laws vary widely between states. Some criminalize the mere unauthorized access of a network, while others require monetary damages or intentional breaching of security features. The majority of state laws do not specify what is meant by "unauthorized access". Regardless, enforcement is minimal in most states even where it is illegal, and detection is difficult in many cases."

The trade magazines and blogs that I have quickly glanced at all seem to agree on one item regarding OPEN Wi-Fi networks...that from the user's point of view, this is a morals issue: to ask or not to ask (permission to use, that is).

My 2 cents worth but, I was introduced to a few differing opinions while looking this stuff up! Enlightenment is good, knowledge not always!

Dave

 

[Barry & Alana]

Hi everyone, good info on the wi-fi here, We don't use wi-Fi on the road either,I just don't fell comfortable using someone elses system when you really don't know what is going on .....but, we do use our aircard on the road. The service works very well, and I hope its more secure. Everyone tells me it is...but i always wonder. (tad pricey to use in the US with CDN providerr) I do wonder if huges-net is the way to go...satellite tv & internet service in one provider, one bill, and it sounds secure.

 

[deee2]

It seems to me that if you break into someone else's network that is marked private, that should be illegal. But if you connect with an 'unsecured' site, isn't that pretty much an invitation? If they don't want anyone to try it, then they would secure it, right? We only use the RV 'unsecured' networks to send email or comment on forums... I went to a book store and paid for a secure site with my own password to pay bills. I was glad to read on here though, that did convince me to at least use the secured site for bills. I know, DUH.

We're in the Hiouchi RV Resort near Crescent City today.. tomorrow we move to Trinidad, a very short drive working our way home to Nv. I don't want to go home until it's under 90 degrees! lol

Thanks for all the input!

Donna


Donna