Caution : Stay Safe on Public Wi-Fi
 

How to Stay Safe on Public Wi-Fi

कैसे रहें पब्लिक वाईफाई पर सुरक्षित

फ्री वाईफाई नहीं है भरोसेमंद

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You're at a café with your laptop and latte in hand, getting ready to review new sales leads and the quarterly financial projections. First you hop on the free Wi-Fi that the shop's management provides. Then you connect your laptop to a projector so that the entire café can take a look, and finally you hand out some printed copies of your confidential product specifications to the other patrons so that they can follow along.

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Nothing Is Private on Open Wi-Fi

Today, most tech users know how (and why) to secure their home wireless routers. Windows 7 and Vista now pop up a dialog box to warn you when you're connecting to unencrypted wireless networks.

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In a coffee shop, an airport lounge, or a library, however, people frequently connect without thinking twice--and though using an unencrypted connection to check a baseball score or a flight status might be acceptable, reading e-mail or performing any Web activity that requires a login is akin to using your speakerphone in the middle of a crowd.

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So why don't all businesses encrypt their Wi-Fi networks? The answer lies in the difficult key distribution system in the IEEE 802.11 design specification: To encrypt traffic, the network owner or manager needs to select a password, also known as a "network key." The arrangement requires one password per network, shared among all users whether the owner has selected the less secure, outdated WEP or the more secure WPA or WPA2.

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At home, all you have to do is set it up once, tell your family the password, and surf worry-free from a poolside lounge chair. In a coffee shop, the barista would have to tell each patron the password (or the 26-character hexadecimal WEP key) and perhaps even troubleshoot their connection--definitely not a chore that your typical java slinger would relish. In that situation, nothing beats a blank password for ease of use.

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Even if the network is encrypted, however, you're still not completely safe. Once your computer knows the password, your communication is safe only from people who aren't on the network; all the other diners in the café can see your traffic because they are using the same password.

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Your Personal Business Is Your Competitors' Business

But what if you think that your data isn't important enough for someone to snoop on? Perhaps you're just browsing Websites, not logging in to any e-mail systems or Web applications that require passwords. You should be safe then, right? Not necessarily.

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Imagine you're on airport Wi-Fi while you're returning from an industry trade show. Instead of checking the hundreds of e-mail messages waiting for you (unlikely, right?), you decide to browse your competitors' Websites, looking for ideas. Or maybe you elect to research potential acquisition targets.

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In the background, however, your e-mail client detects an Internet connection and starts to download your e-mail. A colleague back at headquarters sees your instant-messenger status change to 'online' and sends you a panicked plea: "Huge problem @ factory. Possible recall. Call Bob ASAP!

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Armed with nothing more than wireless packet analyzer software, a fellow conference attendee in the same seating area may be able to glean competitive intelligence based solely on the Websites that you visit and your (probably unencrypted) instant messages--not to mention the personal e-mail from the recruiter indicating you're ready to jump ship, or the notes reflecting your relationship problems with your significant other. In short, the "other guy" is reading your messages before you are, and you didn't even do anything.

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Stick to SSL for Webmail

First, to combat mail snoops, use a Webmail system with HTTPS for the whole session. Almost all Webmail systems use HTTPS when asking you to log in, so your password is transmitted securely. However, after authentication, they usually switch back to HTTP because it reduces the computational strain on their servers and makes serving advertisements easier.

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That means that everyone who is on the same wireless network (either unencrypted or with a shared password) can read the content of your e-mail. In some cases, a person can steal your session cookie and log in to your Webmail session without your password. (That is, until you click the 'Logout' link--which you do every time, right?)

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Two very notable exceptions are Gmail and your corporate e-mail system (such as Outlook Web Access). Earlier this year, Gmail switched from the common practice of using HTTPS just for logins to using HTTPS throughout the entire Webmail session.

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Google Apps users were previously able to opt in to this feature, but it is now the default with the ability to opt out (if you hate security). This change, combined with Google's new suspicious-login detection algorithms, make Gmail a standout among free Webmail providers. If you were looking for a reason to switch from your AOL, Hotmail, or Yahoo account, you've found it.

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Your company's Webmail system is also likely protected by HTTPS at all times, because that is the default configuration for most systems. However, if you check your work messages using local software (Outlook, Thunderbird, Mac OS X's Mail) instead of HTTPS Web-based e-mail, you may or may not be using encryption.

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Paid Hotspots: Safety Not Included

While researching this article, I found a common misconception among travelers and coffee enthusiasts--namely, the idea that commercial hotspots that require pay-per-hour or monthly subscription fees (AT&T, Boingo, GoGo, T-Mobile) are more secure than their free counterparts because a payment and a password are involved.

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In fact, these hotspots are almost always unencrypted, and they employ what is called a "captive Web portal" only to prevent access to the Internet until you enter a payment method (or subscriber password). Though this "gateway" Web portal is usually delivered over HTTPS (to protect the credit card information or the password), once authenticated all the traffic is unencrypted on the wireless network.

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As a result, your $10 monthly fee gives you access but not security. In fact, due to the nature of radio frequency transmissions, another person--even if they aren't a subscriber--can still view any unencrypted traffic that you send, just by joining the same SSID wireless network.

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This means that outsiders can easily observe and capture any regular HTTP Websites you visit, any unencrypted POP3 e-mail you access, and any FTP transfers you make. Talented hackers can even modify their wireless card to clone the identity of your wireless card, thus obtaining free access through a commercial hotspot by "piggybacking" on your signals.

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Use Your VPN

If your company offers a VPN (virtual private network) connection with Internet access, you should take advantage of that functionality when using either free or subscription Wi-Fi hotspots. By enabling the VPN function on your laptop, you ensure that all of your communication is encrypted with high-strength ciphers and tunneled from the Wi-Fi hotspot, across the Internet, and into your company's data center, where it is unpacked and sent out on the company's Internet connection.

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This is a secure method of accessing company resources (intranet, e-mail, databases) because no matter who is also on the shared wireless network, you have a private tunnel back to your company. In some companies' VPN configurations, you can also browse the Internet in addition to accessing company resources.

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Such an arrangement may be slightly slower than unencrypted Web browsing, but the security makes it worthwhile. Additionally, if you are traveling in a country that imposes Internet restrictions (such as China or Egypt), you can tunnel your traffic back through your U.S.-based VPN connection and reach sites as if you were stateside.

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If your company doesn't offer a VPN service or has a "split tunneling" VPN (in which only requests to company resources travel through the encrypted tunnel, and all other traffic transmits unencrypted directly to the target), don't worry--you can still stay safe.

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Try out HotSpot Shield, a no-cost VPN service from AnchorFree. The company offers its own VPN software that you install on your laptop prior to using public Wi-Fi.

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Once you enable the software and service, it encrypts your traffic and sends it through a tunnel to the HotSpot Shield data center and then out to the Internet, in much the same way a company's VPN server does. HotSpot Shield even has mobile VPN settings (with no downloads necessary) to protect your Web surfing on your iPhone using the built-in Cisco VPN client software that Apple provides.

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By using a such a service, you make your connection secure all the way from the coffee shop to the AnchorFree data center in Northern California. Once there, your traffic travels unencrypted to its final destination on the Internet, as if you were browsing from a laptop plugged directly into the company's data center.

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This arrangement isn't perfectly secure, since the encrypted tunnel does not travel all the way to the Website you visit. However, it's certainly more secure than a setup with no VPN at all; to get in, would-be data thieves would need access to the AnchorFree data center, not just the Wi-Fi network you're on.

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Wi-Fi Surfing Safety Summary

So, to recap:

1. If your company has a VPN that you can use for Web browsing, use it.

2. If you can't use a company VPN, give HotSpot Shield a try.

3. Don't equate subscription (paid-for) Wi-Fi Internet with secure browsing.

4. On unencrypted wireless networks, everyone can see where you are surfing (except on HTTPS Websites).

5. On encrypted wireless networks, everyone with the password can see where you are surfing (this could be a handful of people in your house, or hundreds of people in an airport).

6. If you must use a Wi-Fi hotspot without any form of VPN, imagine that your laptop is connected to a stadium Jumbotron. Don't visit any sites you wouldn't visit with 80,000 people looking over your shoulder.

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फ्री वाईफाई नहीं है भरोसेमंद


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इंटरनेट का प्रयोग आज के समय में हर कोई करता है। इसके लिए लोग घर से लेकर किसी रेस्त्रां तक में इसका पीछा नहीं छोड़ते हैं। इंटरनेट को कई तरह से प्रयोग में लाया जाता है, जैसे राउटर, डोंगल और वाईफाई। राउटर को सुरक्षित माना जा सकता है, लेकिन सबसे ज्यादा हैकिंग की शिकायत वाईफाई कनेक्शंस में ही देखने को मिलती हैं। आज हम आपको बताते हैं वाईफाई के कुछ आम खतरों के बारे में, जिनसे निपटकर आप सेफ सर्फिंग का मजा उठा सकते हैं।

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आमतौर पर यूजर्स किसी भी कॉफी शॉप या मॉल में जाते हैं और अपना लैपटॉप या टैब का वाईफाई ऑन करके बैठ जाते हैं। मुफ्त में मिलने वाली यह सुविधा आपको सोशल नेटवर्किग, खबरें और बैंक बैलेंस चेक करने की जरूरत तो भले ही पूरी करती है, लेकिन कई बार आपकी निजी जानकारी हैक हो जाती है। आप कभी भी बाहर जाएं तो एक बार जरूर सोच लें कि किसी सार्वजनिक जगह में लॉगइन करना सेफ रहेगा या नहीं।

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फ्री वाईफाई के खतरे


पब्लिक वाईफाई का प्रयोग करने से पहले जान लें कि दूसरे लोग आपकी बातचीत पढ़ सकते हैं। अगर आप सावधानी नहीं बरतते हैं तो आपकी निजी जानकारी पब्लिक वाईफाई नेटवर्क से एक क्लियर टेक्स्ट के रूप में दूसरों के पास पहुंच जाती है। इतना ही नहीं अगर मॉल या एयरपोर्ट के आईटी विशेषज्ञ चाहें तो कुछ आसान सॉफ्टवेयर टूल्स की मदद से आपके नेटवर्क में झांक सकते हैं और आप क्या कर रहे हैं इसे आसानी से देख सकते हैं। आपके पासवर्ड, बैंक की जानकारी, तस्वीरें जैसी कई अहम निजी चीजें चुराई जा सकती हैं। अगर आप एक ही पासवर्ड को कई साइट्स पर इस्तेमाल कर रहे हैं तो यह भी एक बड़ी समस्या हो सकती है। पब्लिक हॉटस्पॉट पर यूजर्स को इन बातों का ख्याल जरूर रखना चाहिए।

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हनीपॉट से खतरा

आजकल हनीपॉट भी आम यूजर्स के लिए खतरा बनकर सामने आ रहा है। हैकर्स अपना खुद का नकली वाईफाई हॉटस्पॉट बनाते हैं और उन्हें कोई पब्लिक वाईफाई का नाम दे देते हैं। इसे हनीपॉट कहते हैं। कई यूजर्स इसके चक्कर में फंस जाते हैं और अपनी अहम जानकारी गंवा बैठते हैं। इस तरह के पॉट को फिक्स करने के लिए किसी भी खास सेटअप की जरूरत नहीं होती है। हैकर्स सिर्फ एक स्मार्टफोन और लैपटॉप की मदद से ही इसे बना देते हैं। वर्तमान में ये हनीपॉट आम बात हो चुके हैं।

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अकाउंट हाईजैक

पब्लिक वाईफाई के प्रयोग में सबसे ज्यादा खतरा अकाउंट हाईजैकिंग का होता है। हैकर्स आपके वाईफाई ट्रैफिक को मॉनिटर करते हैं और आपकी ब्राउजर कुकीज को चुरा लेते हैं। एक बार हैकर्स के पास कुकी आ गई, वे आपके अकाउंट का पासवर्ड जानकर आराम से उसका दुरुपयोग कर सकते हैं।

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कैसे रहें पब्लिक वाईफाई पर सुरक्षित

नेटवर्क की जानकारी
कनेक्ट होने से पहले यह अवश्य जान लें कि नेटवर्क किस कंपनी का है ताकि आप किसी हनीपॉट से कनेक्ट न हो जाएं। अगर आप नेटवर्क को लेकर सुनिश्चित नहीं हो पा रहे हैं तो वहां काम कर रहे कर्मचारी से जरूर पूछ लें।

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ऑटोमैटिक ऑप्शन करें बंद

अगर आपका कंप्यूटर या स्मार्टफोन वाईफाई से ऑटोमैटिकली कनेक्ट हो जाता है तो यह ऑप्शन बंद कर दें। इससे आप कनेक्ट करने से पहले जान सकेंगे कि आप कहां कनेक्ट कर रहे हैं।

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https से कनेक्शन

वाईफाई हमेशा https से ही कनेक्ट करें। जब आप इस सर्विस का प्रयोग करते हैं तो आपकी कम्यूनिकेशन और वेबसाइट सुरक्षित रहती है।

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वीपीएन सर्विस का इस्तेमाल

डाटा भेजते समय वीपीएन सर्विस का प्रयोग करें। अगर आपका कोई डाटा चुराने की कोशिश करेगा तो उसे केवल एंक्रिप्टेड डाटा ही दिखाई देगा। वीपीएन के अलावा आप चाहें तो विटोपिया डॉट नेट, स्ट्रॉन्गवीपीएन डॉट कॉम और नॉर्टन हॉटस्पॉट प्राइवेसी का भी इस्तेमाल कर सकते हैं।

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टू फैक्टर ऑथेंटिकेशन

आपके लिए टू फैक्टर ऑथेंटिकेशन भी फायदेमंद रहेगा। इसमें पासवर्ड और सेकंडरी कोड दो बार मांगा जाता है। इससे हैकर्स के लिए कुछ भी चुराना मुश्किल हो जाता है।

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ऑनलाइन वर्ल्ड में जरूरी सावधानियां

अगर आप ऑनलाइन रहते हैं और इंटरनेट के इस्तेमाल के शौकीन हैं तो बेहतर होगा कि कुछ सावधानियां अवश्य बरतें। साइबर क्राइम के बढ़ते हुए इस दौर में इंटरनेट यूज करते समय हमें हर पल सावधानी बरतने की जरूरत है। कहीं गलती से भी चूक पर बहुत बड़ी चपत लग सकती है। ऐसे में अगर कुछ बातों का ध्यान रखा जाए तो इंटरनेट का इस्तेमाल कभी सजा नहीं बनेगा।