skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Unwary Consumers at Risk on Public Wi-Fi Networks

play audio
Play

Thursday, August 4, 2016   

CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Using public wireless networks to check bank accounts, shop and even log into social media accounts could put sensitive personal information in jeopardy, according to new AARP survey.

Frank Abagnale, an ambassador with AARP Fraud Watch Network, has been associated with the FBI for more than four decades - you may remember his story from the movie Catch Me if You Can starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks. He said the risk for identity theft on non-secure Wi-Fi is real.

“If you're in a coffee shop or the airport, it's fine to play a game, it's fine go check the weather, it's fine to look up something up on the internet,” Abagnale said. "But it is not the place make a credit card transaction, answer an e-mail that's requesting your Social Security number or make a bank transaction."

Nearly half of all consumers log on to free public Wi-Fi at least once every few months according to the study, and 33 percent of those users shop with credit cards; 37 percent have conducted banking.

AARP Wyoming joined a national campaign to spread the word about the potential hazards of public Wi-Fi and is encouraging businesses to download a safety tips poster at AARP.org/WatchYourWiFi.

Abagnale says in one common scam, a hacker positions himself between users and the Wi-Fi connection. Instead of talking directly with the hotspot, users send information to the hacker who then impersonates them to send and receive data. Abagnale pointed to a recent incident where a victim tried to wire $175,000 from their banking account to a client.

"The client never received it,” Abagnale said. “[They] found out that it was intercepted, and of course the bank is not liable because you were committing that transaction on public Wi-Fi, which is something you're not supposed to do."

Since most people are honest and don't think in a deceptive way, Abagnale said, many fall prey to scams. But he believes people will protect themselves if they know how hackers prey on victims and get away with it.

"Unfortunately if you make it easy for someone to steal from you, they probably will,” he said. "So you don't want to make it easy. There's a lot of great information out there to protect yourself. Be proactive and you're less likely to be a victim."



get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021