I used to think that if you were connected to your own wireless network and using a password to connect, that your information was mostly safe.  Last week, I learned that wireless traffic is literally broadcast into the air in a sphere.  The information “packets”  travel through the air and are then captured by devices and routed to their destination. 

The implication for campaigns and public officials is that since this information is scattershot broadcast into the air, it can also be captured and transformed into readable information by a “hacker”.  This would be less difficult if you were “hardwired” by one of those yellow or blue ethernet cables and accessing websites that way.  But, since we’re talking about wireless, I’d operate on this assumption:  don’t ever send sensitive data over wireless connections. 

Is this practical?  Maybe not.  What’s the solution, then?

USE A VPN

What’s a VPN?

A VPN is a “virtual private network”.  It’s basically a tunnel that creates a walled of channel for your data.  Your information gets “encrypted” (translated into secret code) when it leaves your computer.  The VPN prevents someone from gathering that data out of the air and accessing it.

If you ever use a wireless connection, ESPECIALLY a public one (just don’t!), always use a VPN.

Which VPN should you use?  I don’t want to recommend anything right now.  Please do some research, and ask your organization if they already have one.  Always use it.