Internet or not?

I had a call from a guy claiming to be a rep. from Micrsoft stating that my computer had been compromized. He then wanted me to type something on my computer.I hung up and called my virus protection co. They told me that Microsoft calls no one. They then proceeded to clean up my computer. They brought up a screen with all the times I was online. By the dates I could tell I was away from home and on public Wifi!!!! Be very careful my friends.

sdetweil wrote:

correct, but it helps keep the riff raff from collecting info that is NOT protected by HTTPS.. there is a constant cookie flow with each http request.. gosh knows what the sites stored there.. .

Hehe. Until you realize the riffraff are on the same network inside the RV 3 spots over. LOL

SolidAxleDurango wrote:
... The silly wifi password and local router security has NOTHING to do with ensuring the safety of the transaction between you and the bank/vendor.

...

correct, but it helps keep the riff raff from collecting info that is NOT protected by HTTPS.. there is a constant cookie flow with each http request.. gosh knows what the sites stored there..

My company used to have to deal with this stuff a wile back, but the last 10 years have really improved the capabilities. I am a systems and application architect in my day job.

amandasgramma wrote:
debit card hacked 2 times,

There in is one major issue. Businesses and banks love debit cards!

Consumers should learn to hate and reject there use. Charge things on a credit card and routinely pay it off without occurring interest charges.

So you say what the $$@#? What does it matter? Well it should matter a lot! A debt card that is hacked, your money is gone and you need to have the bank put it back. You might bounce checks in the mean time, or not have access to your money for several days or a week.

When a credit card is hacked and you are "billed" for something you did not purchase and in a much better position, only needing the credit card company to remove the unauthorized charges. THEIR money is in play not YOURS!!!!

Chris

B.O. Plenty wrote:
I us the campground internet. Haven't found one yet that doesn't have it. As far as privacy is concerned..I don't have any files that I keep in my computer. Not even sure what they are. There's nothing coming out of this thing that I worry about. Web surfing and e-mail..That's it. Too many people get too hung up on all this techno crap..

B.O.

As a person who has had her debit card hacked 2 times, I disagree with you. The last time they couldn't find the source of how they got my number and passwords. I had only used it once......on the internet....... yet they couldn't get anything to charge the people with. I'm VERY careful......and if it means I spend $50. for my own MiFi.....then so be it.....

For someone like me who deals with storage and retrieval contract/pricing/credit card transaction/HIPAA (medical)/personnel files..... I get a chuckle out of this thread.

It doesn't matter what type of network you're on, if you're using a modern web browser and are communicating with your bank site over a secure connection (padlock) for online banking/purchases etc... It is safe. The entire transaction (end to end) is encrypted and safe. The silly wifi password and local router security has NOTHING to do with ensuring the safety of the transaction between you and the bank/vendor.

Now this is not to say that your computer hasn't been infected by visiting (ahem not so nice) websites. If someone infects your PC/Mac, then nothing you do on it is safe - your files are at risk; everything you potentially type is collected.... And again, this is irrelevant for the type of network you are on... If you're infected the traffic goes from your pc/mac OUT to the recipient... Not the other way around. Keep your 14 year old grandson away from your PC and stay away from porn sites; ignore unsolicited emails; keep a good anti-virus product up to date and generally you'll be fine.

It's clear a few of the posters in this thread have no clue what they are talking about. Two people in any conversation know which one between the two of them is making it up as they go along. The maker-upper; and the person who actually understands the subject matter.

I us the campground internet. Haven't found one yet that doesn't have it. As far as privacy is concerned..I don't have any files that I keep in my computer. Not even sure what they are. There's nothing coming out of this thing that I worry about. Web surfing and e-mail..That's it. Too many people get too hung up on all this techno crap..

B.O.

diver110 wrote:
If you are used to cable internet, you won't be happy with the much slower satellite connection.

ahmen to that.. 5 yrs ago we moved from city to rural. from 20mbs down roadrunner to 1mbs down wireless broadband.. had to go back to wired phone lines.

last year AT&T finally got uverse 6mbs down into our sub.. (no tv service yet)

we have poor cellphone service here too, the 4g tower is too far awy, so a mifi wouldn't work, and the data limit on mifi is terrible. (for a work at home person). uverse is currently 250gig.

ependydad wrote:

BlindGuynAR wrote:

bad99ram wrote:
We found that most parks offer free Wi Fi. In fact many rest stops also have Wi Fi. When we camp in places with no services we just go to McDonalds ect which offer Wi Fi. However, with that being said if you use it lots and need to have access when you want it then perhaps you would be better off going the other route.

Please tell me you are creating a VPN on those public networks:). For sure if you are conducting financial transactions. If not you are a hackers/identity thief's perfect dream come true!

I've heard this many times and honestly don't understand it. If you're using HTTPS and are in a SSL connection, the data is encrypted from the server to the browser. The browser decrypts it before showing it to you. You can sniff network traffic all day and all you'll see are encrypted packets being thrown around.

(On edit- I'm a web developer by day, but don't do a whole lot with security. So, I'm somewhat savvy.)

Where's the security hole?

That is true as long as you are getting to those specific sites. But you should also be aware of the ability to "Control" a router. You can run a Tomcat server on just about any newer Android device. If someone was really savvy, they could make a great spoof of a common banking website and write a script to intercept individuals trying to go to the reputable site. It's been a while, but in my college years, it was fun to take over a router at a restaurant and force all the hipsters to view whatever we wanted them to for a short while (Hearing their remarks and disbelief as they try to go to their desired page made for some cheap entertainment). Pretty evil prank really. But you can get even more malicious. There are plenty of guides up there that show you how to convert your Android phone into a webserver and router controlling machine.

So technically, there really isn't a hole if you can ensure that you make it to the legitimate website. But if a man-in-the-middle attack is successful and re-directs you to the less than legitimate website (via controlling a router), then you can be giving up your personal information to a party that you don't want. Sadly, the elderly (typical RV'ers) are a vulnerable target and not everybody takes the time to ensure they are on the legitimate HTTPS website. Also, not all RV parks/campgrounds have the greatest IT staff out there when it comes to configuring routers for security. I am public router adverse as well ever since discovering this loophole.

Atom Ant wrote:

Me Again wrote:

greende wrote:
So far works well but we do not camp in the western part of the country where cell service is nonexistent.

Darn Indians keep taking down our cell tower every time Verizon installs a new one. Chris

hahahaha - I was thinking the same thing!

Usually I just t-tap the telegraph line running along the railroad tracks. :B

We were out jeeping East of Phoenix and stopped to look at an old pony express station. "Service" was down that day so I could not email a picture of the place to friends. Later we heard that one of the ponies threw a shoe! Guess that is why I could not get a connection.

Chris