Never Do This in a Dubai Hotel Room

Most of us love free Wi-Fi when we’re travelling, especially when we’re overseas. Unfortunately joining an unsecured network can leave us open to hackers and other unsavoury types.

Fake Wi-Fi hot spots have been setup by hackers who create network names that look familiar and trustworthy, and even if you’re using a hotel, airport or restaurant’s real Wi-Fi anyone else on the same network could potentially snatch your unencrypted data. VPNs, or Virtual Private Networks, are a way to protect you and your data. So how do they work and what should you know before using one?

HOW VPNS PROTECT PEOPLE

VPNs are encrypted “tunnels” that protect your browsing and internet activity from hackers, network administrators, and anyone else with prying eyes.

Claire Cheng from VPN providerTunnel Bear says VPNs shield your information on public Wi-Fi, ISPs, and other local networks.“This means you can keep your personal information and browsing habits safe — you never know who can be intercepting or modifying your traffic while you’re in a cafe or at an airport. In addition, running a VPN on shared or public networks also prevents the network from tampering with your traffic, for example, the hotel you’re staying at injecting ads into your browsing.”

Trafalgar Australia’s managing director Matthew Cameron Smith is a frequent traveller and VPN user and says he always makes sure his data is encrypted when doing online banking or anything that requires a password. “It’s always good to be safe and secure when travelling and making sure that you have what’s called end point security solutions on whatever device you’re using. Many networks such as hotel Wi-Fi are usually very insecure so a VPN to protect anything sensitive is usually a good idea.”

HOW TO CHOOSE A VPN PROVIDER

Look for a trusted provider with a privacy policy that clearly states how they’ll handle your data. “You should always be wary of providers that are free,” Cheng says, “Most of them make money by selling user browsing habits to third parties, serving ads, or selling your bandwidth.” Doing some research into what other users have to say and reading app store reviews will also help you make an educated decision.

HOW VPNS HELP YOU USE YOUR FAVOURITE SITES AND APPS

VPNs can let you access sites and apps that may be geo-blocked or censored. “All traffic can route over the VPN so it looks like you are in your home country,” Cameron Smith explains. “That way you can access information from your suppliers, Foxtel, Netflix etc with the content you are paying for. These are sometimes restricted when you are not in your home country.”

WHERE NOT TO USE VPNS

VPNs are illegal in some countries including China, Turkey, Iraq and the UAE.

Penalties can be severe, with travellers caught using a VPN in the UAE including Abu Dhabi and Dubai facing a minimum fine of AED500,000 (A$180,000) and a maximum fine of AED2,000,000 (A$717,000) with possible jail time.

If you decide to go ahead and risk it, remember you’re more likely to be caught if you use VPNs on hotel wireless networks where you’ve put in your name or room number. But those who prefer to be safe than sorry are better saving VPN time for other countries.