Public WiFi Safety Card™

Public wifi safety starts before you connect
Airports, cafes, hotels, and co-working spaces all offer free WiFi. Attackers specifically target these locations because most people connect without any precautions. This card tells you the risks, what to avoid, and what to do every time you join a public network.

The six threats covered
Evil twin hotspots are fake networks with names identical to the real one. Once you connect, attackers intercept everything you send. Man-in-the-middle attacks let an attacker read and modify your data in transit. Packet sniffing captures your unencrypted traffic. Auto-connect traps silently join your device to a fake hotspot. Malware gets distributed through fake update prompts on compromised networks. File sharing exposure lets other users on the same network reach your folders if sharing is left on.

What to never do on public WiFi
Banking, investment, and crypto accounts should never be accessed on public networks. Email and work logins are high risk. Online shopping and card details should wait for a trusted connection. Sensitive documents should not be sent or uploaded. Software should not be downloaded. Links in emails should not be clicked.

Five public wifi safety steps
Turn on a VPN before connecting — it encrypts your traffic and blocks most attacks. Verify the network name with a staff member before joining. Only use HTTPS sites and never ignore browser security warnings. Turn off AirDrop and set your Windows network profile to Public. Disable auto-connect and forget the network when you are done.

A printable checklist for every connection
Good public wifi safety habits are easy to build with a checklist. The card includes six items to run through before connecting: verify the network name, VPN on, auto-connect off, AirDrop off, sensitive tasks saved for later, forget network when done.

Need help setting up a VPN or hardening your online privacy?
Our Online Privacy Protection service covers VPN setup, account security, and privacy hardening in one remote session. You can also browse our other free security tools while you are here.