Commercial vs. Free Hotspots

Wherever Wi-Fi hotspots are available, users usually have
to choose between two options: either connect to a paid
connection or free one.

Free hotspots are more popular because not only do
commercial establishments provide this but also users at
home who have wireless connections and who wittingly or
unwittingly share their connection.

The main attraction in free hotspots is that, well, they
are free. What one has to do is simply connect to that
network and browse the day away.

Aside from that, there are groups that believe in sharing
their bandwidth with others. They say that since they do
not maximize their bandwidth anyway, they might as well let
others jump into their connection too.

But free hotspots have their share of problems. They are
usually unsecure which enables anyone with the right
software to sniff the data sent by other people on the
network. It can be a breeding ground for hackers and
identity thieves.

Meanwhile, there’s the alternative of having paid Wi-Fi
connections. This type of hotspot can usually be found in
airports. This mainly caters to business travellers who
need to connect to the internet even at the airport.

The good thing with this option is that it is more secure
because of several measures made by airports in ensuring
the privacy of data over the network.

But the data isn’t completely secure. They are still
logged, by airports for example, for purposes of having
usage records that law enforcement agencies require in
monitoring criminal activity.
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