topic Is It Safe To Bank On Public Wi-Fi? in Credit in the News

Is It Safe To Bank On Public Wi-Fi?

my-own-fico — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 00:21:42 GMT

I was wondering how this article ties in with wifi access to myFICO.

Is It Safe To Bank On Public Wi-Fi? How Not To Get Hacked!

In light of this, if you go to http://ficoforums.myfico.com/ and click on Register, is that a way to create a forums login that is entirely separate from your myFICO score report login? I am concerned that as a default a login is used for both.

Re: Is It Safe To Bank On Public Wi-Fi?

marty56 — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 21:00:57 GMT

I would not do it unless they use wireless encryption. I would also not use a public computer like in a library or school either.

Re: Is It Safe To Bank On Public Wi-Fi?

oogy — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 01:20:47 GMT

Having spent a few years in a call center doing tech support in a former life, I would never recommend you use public wifi for anything you're be concerned about being stolen. It's ridiculous how easy it is to "hack" a wifi (even one that is "secured") if you know what you're doing. 9 times out of 10, you're alright because no one else in that library or coffee shop with you has any malicious intentions - but that one time when you happen to be in the wrong wifi hotspot at the wrong time is all it takes to make a big mess.

Re: Is It Safe To Bank On Public Wi-Fi?

awal — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 18:28:13 GMT

I'm not sure if I would consider this hacking a wifi network. I think this can better be described as spoofing a web page. This kind of thing could be done on a wired or wireless network. It basically comes down to don't connect to a network (wired or wifi) you don't trust even if it is encrypted.

Re: Is It Safe To Bank On Public Wi-Fi?

Uborrow-Upay — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 15:18:25 GMT

It is if you use a VPN (virtual private network), which creates a private, secure tunnel for your transmissions.

You can do this using a VPN service (for a fee), or you can create one on your own, linking to your own PC at home or elsewhere.

If you are on the road a lot and need banking access, this is could work well for you.