I can appreciate that the advice to avoid certain types of websites while using public Wi-Fi may not be received well by some . However , I stand by it because often there is a much safer option available . Simply use your mobile phone as a hotspot and connect to your carrier ’ s network . If coupled with the use of a VPN , your entire Internet session will be about as secure as you can make it . If you don ’ t know how to do this , ask your IT support for a quick lesson .
I wish I could stop here but I can ’ t , because almost every law firm I know of is comprised of more than one person . Anyone at a firm can naively or unwittingly fall prey to a cybercriminal when logging onto a public Wi-Fi network , and this could result in very serious and unintended consequences for the firm and firm clients . Best practices would mandate that everyone who uses a mobile device for work be subject to a written policy regarding the appropriate use of public Wi-Fi . If your firm has no such policy , now ’ s the time . Of course , any policy is going to be meaningless if there is no training on the risks and / or no enforcement of the provisions , so keep that in mind .
Now to my initial question . Should lawyers just say no to the use of public Wi-Fi or try to prohibit anyone in their employ from using it ? I don ’ t necessarily go that far , as long as all users have been made aware of the risks and given the appropriate tools that will help them minimize the risks .
That said , let me share one final thought , because I do get push back on this topic and can anticipate you will too . Some will say something along the lines of this : “ The Starbucks signal is free ,
I ’ ve used it many times and never had a problem , so why all the unnecessary fuss ?” My response is always the same . How do you know you were never a victim ? No one is going to send you a thank you note for allowing them to steal your credit card number or place a keylogger on your laptop . We all need to understand that hacking tools are widely available to the masses . This isn ’ t just about who made the Wi-Fi available , it ’ s also about what ’ s happening on the public network while you are using it . Always remember that you are never alone while using public Wi-Fi and you simply have no way of knowing what everyone else ’ s intentions are .
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