Security or Convenience, TC2027

With the increasing number of devices connected to the Internet, sometimes (most of the times, really) we do things thinking they are making us more secure on the internet, but we are unintentionally doing the opposite.

I will talk about some authentication methods or things we do on the Web and analyze if they are keeping us safe or actually harming us.

Whenever we go to a park, a mall, or any public space, we are tempted to see the latest memes, videos, check/send important work emails, or do some work on a coffee shop. To do this, we connect (sometimes automatically) to Free Public Wi-Fi's, I know it is very convenient, but please DO NOT USE FREE PUBLIC WI-FI to do important work or send sensitive data, WHY? Because you need NO AUTHENTICATION to establish a network connection, this means anyone can see whatever information you're sending (important emails, credit card information, you name it). Some measures you can do to be safer are: use a VPN (maybe I will write a Blog about this), on your browser, type "https" instead of "http" for the websites you're visiting, this adds an extra layer of security.

 = not safe

 = safe!

A very convenient thing for when we forget our password, is to recieve a code via SMS to your mobile phone, this is kind of safe but there are some risks with it:
SMS are not protected from someone else seeing them.
There's no assurance they will go to the intended recipient. (Databreach)

Fingerprints! I think most smartphones nowadays come with this option, forget about those boring, old-fashioned secure passwords, now you can unlock your device wih your fingerprint! Is this convenient? hell yes, is this safe? maybe not so much.
Researchers developed a set of MasterPrints that could match real prints similar to those used by smartphones as much as 65% of the time. (NY Times)

I can't list every single authentication method and its risks, these methods change over time, but we must start thinking about which authentication methods we use and why we use them, is it for security (most times, really secure methods are a pain in the buttocks) or is it for convenience? Then we should search for the risks of doing so, to stay more secure.

If you want to learn more:

https://www.kaspersky.com/resource-center/preemptive-safety/public-wifi-risks
https://www.lifewire.com/disable-automatic-wireless-connections-153376
https://www.databreachtoday.com/blogs/convenience-over-security-often-best-policy-p-2233
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/10/technology/fingerprint-security-smartphones-apple-google-samsung.html