{"id":51809,"date":"2024-08-01T05:35:40","date_gmt":"2024-08-01T09:35:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.kaspersky.com\/blog\/?p=51809"},"modified":"2024-08-01T05:35:40","modified_gmt":"2024-08-01T09:35:40","slug":"protecting-from-airplane-wi-fi-evil-twin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kaspersky.com\/blog\/protecting-from-airplane-wi-fi-evil-twin\/51809\/","title":{"rendered":"Fake Wi-Fi on board a flight"},"content":{"rendered":"

Evil twins \u2014 malicious Wi-Fi hotspots that intercept user data \u2014 are back in vogue. While the threat itself is nothing new (we\u2019ve covered it before<\/a>), fake Wi-Fi incidents have recently reached new heights \u2014 literally. In a particularly interesting case from Australia, a passenger was arrested for setting up evil twins both at the airport and on board the plane during the flight<\/a>.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a good reason these days why passengers are more likely to use in-flight Wi-Fi: airlines are increasingly offering entertainment streamed directly to your devices rather than on the seatback screens.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how it works: after takeoff, you enable Wi-Fi on your phone, laptop or tablet, connect to the access point, open your browser, and voil\u00e0 \u2014 you\u2019re on the airline\u2019s media portal. From there you can choose from a selection of movies, music, games, and more. And sometimes this same portal offers internet access \u2014usually for an additional fee.<\/p>\n

While streaming entertainment saves airlines money on installing and maintaining seatback screens, it requires more vigilance from passengers \u2014 who probably don\u2019t expect to be targeted mid-flight. In the case mentioned above, the perpetrator carried on board a laptop and a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot with the same network name as the legitimate airline Wi-Fi.<\/p>\n

Unsuspecting passengers, connecting to what they thought was the official network simply because its signal was stronger (the weaker, genuine one with the same name generally isn\u2019t shown) \u2014 were then directed to a fake authentication page. This page requested an email address \u2014 and password! \u2014 or social network credentials, supposedly to sign in to the airline\u2019s online services. According to police, the criminal intended to use this data to hijack accounts and access personal information.<\/p>\n

The insidiousness of this kind of attack lies in the victims\u2019 limited options: stuck on board a plane, connected to what they believe is legitimate Wi-Fi, they have just two options: (i) provide the requested information, or (ii) forgo any and all in-flight entertainment \u2014 because neither cellular networks nor other Wi-Fi access points are available during the flight. Therefore, the chances of a successful attack are\u2026 sky-high.<\/p>\n

How to use in-flight Wi-Fi safely<\/h2>\n

Our traditional advice about using free Wi-Fi<\/a> boils down to two simple tips: use 4G\/5G cellular access instead of public Wi-Fi hotspots wherever possible, and when that\u2019s not an option \u2014 protect your connection with a reliable VPN<\/a>. But these don\u2019t\u2026 quite fly at cruising altitude: cellular data is out of reach; you have to disable your VPN to connect to the in-flight portal; and even if you pay for in-flight internet access, the VPN is likely to be patchy or not work at all.<\/p>\n

So, here\u2019s some tailored advice for staying safe when using in-flight Wi-Fi:<\/p>\n