• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Jobs
  • Career
    • Cyber Security Training
    • Work from Home
    • Cyber Security Analyst
    • Remote Work – Six Ways to Keep Your Data Safe When Working Remotely
  • Field Guide
  • Newsletter Signup
  • Deals
  • News
AskCyberSecurity.com

AskCyberSecurity.com

Cyber Security News & Information

  • Home
  • Data Privacy
    • Gamers
    • Government Cyber Security
      • Legislation
      • Standards
        • What are the risks of computer security?
        • Medical Cyber Security
    • Social Media
  • Security
    • Data Breaches
    • Scams
    • Malware
  • Software
    • Apps
    • Web Browsers
  • Glossary
    • Cyber Security Acronyms
  • About Ask Cyber Security
    • Authors
    • Contact Us
  • VPN
    • How Do I Know If My VPN is Working?
    • Best Free VPN iPhone
    • Why Use a VPN?
    • NordVPN vs IPVanish
    • Private Internet Access Download
    • Best VPN for Streaming
      • TikTok VPN
    • VPN Porn
    • Computer Security Software – What You Really Need
  • Tutorials
  • ChatGPT
    • Does ChatGPT Save Data?
AskCyber Home » News » data privacy » Coffee Shop Hacks

Coffee Shop Hacks

2018-01-22 by Michelle Dvorak

How Working at Your Favorite Coffee Shop Can Get You Hacked

Coffee shops are a good place to socialize while getting work done, especially for those who work primarily from home or who are on the road often. But did you know that like other public places, a coffee shop is an easy place to get hacked?

Travelers, digital nomads, and all public WiFi users are at risk for having their personal information hacked while using any shared data connection. Although many are careful not to log into highly sensitive accounts like a credit card or back account, they are not aware that posting on social media accounts can lead indirectly to a hack too.

Hackers can intercept, or sniff, your internet transmission while in mid-air across a WiFi connection. That means your login information, the contents of an email, or anything else going across your laptop or smartphone can be sniffed by a hacker who is nearby. This can happen while the data is moving from your device to the coffee shop WiFi router. It can also happen while your data is moving from the router back to your device. This danger, of course, applies to all public spaces like airports, hotels and retail stores.

When working away from home, many share their whereabouts on social media in the form of photos and posts tagged with location data. Every time a user logs into a social media channel form the device while on public WiFi, hackers have the chance to sniff (or intercept) usernames and passwords. Social media accounts tend to be loaded with information about the user like hometown, pets’ names, high school attended, and family members names. These are all common answers to password reset questions! If your social media account is tied to the same email as any of your banking apps, then you have the perfect setup for a social engineering attack.

What Can I Do to Avoid Being Hacked?

The simplest things to do is to not use shared, unsecure WiFi connections. IF you don’t need a password to login, then the connection is unsecure! If you do need a password, but everyone in the store or hotel has it, then it is still unsecure!

When you off your home or office WiFi (assuming those are secure) then use your smartphone’s data plan to log into online. Surfing websites should be safe, but do not log into any social media accounts, financial accounts, or anything else that uses a password. This includes posting to Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook or other social media apps.

If you travel often and need to use Public WiFi, but need to save money on your data plan by limiting usage, then consider using a Virtual Private Network (VPN.) A VPN is a way to tunnel to a secure connection. That way a nearby hacker quietly sitting near enough to intercept your internet traffic cannot hack your personal data.

Filed Under: data privacy Tagged With: WiFi

About Michelle Dvorak

Michelle writes about cyber security, data privacy focusing on social media privacy as well as how to protect your IoT devices. She has worked in internet technology for over 20 years and owns METRONY, LLC. Michelle earned a B.S. in Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Michelle published a guide to Cyber Security for Business Travelers


LinkedInTwitterFacebook

Primary Sidebar

Subscribe to Our Free Newsletter

We Don't Share or Sell Your Info

Web Browsers

Where Are My Saved Passwords in Chrome?

Google Removes 70 Malicious Browser Add-ons from Chrome Web Store

Firefox 75 Reports Your Browser Settings to Mozilla

Categories

Cyber Security Field Guide

Computer Security While TravelingGet Our Cyber Security Field Guide - Available on Amazon!

Recent Posts

Security Marketing Manager – Remote

Sr. Associate, Cybersecurity Architect – Pfizer

Strategic Customer Success Manager – Cybersecurity – Opportunity for Working Remotely

Top 20 Passwords Leaked on Dark Web

ISU Cybersecurity Leader Job Opening

Cyber Security News

Top 20 Passwords Leaked on Dark Web

… [Read More...] about Top 20 Passwords Leaked on Dark Web

Apple Warns of Actively Exploited Zero-Day Flaw

… [Read More...] about Apple Warns of Actively Exploited Zero-Day Flaw

IRS Stops Facial Recognition System for Online Access

… [Read More...] about IRS Stops Facial Recognition System for Online Access

National Cybersecurity Alliance Announces Data Privacy Week

… [Read More...] about National Cybersecurity Alliance Announces Data Privacy Week

More Cyber Security News

Tags

amazon Android Apple bitcoin China chrome CISA credit card DarkSide DHS DOJ Equifax Europe Facebook facial recognition FBI Firefox FTC games GDPR Google Government hacker identity theft India iPhone Iran IRS LinkedIn Microsoft North Korea PayPal phishing phishing email ransomware REvil Russia smartphone T-Mobile TikTok tutorial VPN WhatsApp WiFi Windows

Government

CBP Looks to Access Airline Passenger Data

FTC Releases Cyber Threat Video Playlist

Malware Found on US Government Funded Phones

UK NCA Reaches Out to Youth to Deter Cybercrimes

More Posts from this Category

Footer

Menu

  • Home
  • About
  • Authors
  • Newsletter Signup
  • PRIVACY POLICY

Search

Why Use a VPN?

NordVPN vs IPVanish VPN Review

NAVIGATION

  • Data Breaches
  • Data Privacy
  • Gamers
  • Scams
  • Malware

MEMBER NJCCIC

New Jersey Cybersecurity & Communications Integration Cell

STAY CONNECTED

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • YouTube
  • Twitter
  • RSS

Copyright © 2023 · AskCyberSecurity.com · METRONY, LLC

Go to mobile version