The Wi-Fi Clone Scam

In many major cities there are parks, coffee shops and many other areas that laptop users flock to for the use of a wireless internet. Depending on where these users go, they can even be lucky enough to find a free Wi-Fi hotspot. Unfortunately, that free Wi-Fi just may be a scam.

Scammers set up and clone popular wireless networks and even create free networks and wait for the victims. When someone turns on their laptop, they simply browse the available networks and choose the one that they want. If the scammers are lucky and the laptop user chooses the cloned network, the scammers now have complete access to their computer.

Many other networks will also ask for a credit card number when a user logs on and scammers will then be able to steal and copy that credit card. The way that wireless networks are set up means that some people will turn on their laptops and automatically connect to the last network that they had previously signed on to. With a cloned Wi-Fi these users could be instantly connected to a scam network.

If there are security and protective software on your laptop, you will find that they will not do much of anything to offer protection against this Wi-Fi scam. There is no a lot that you can do either. The best way to deal with these scammers is to not let them onto your laptop in the first place.

If you use a wireless network, setup the network some place else first. Take a good look at the website so that when you get to that wireless hotspot you should be able to recognize the webpage's. The reason you need to look closely at the correct websites is that a scammer will clone the sites but usually if you know what to look for you will be able to see some differences.

If anything at all looks weird, get off the site and logout quickly. Even though Wi-Fi and its scams have been around for a while, most people are blissfully unaware of them. This is especially true if they have never connected to a Wi-Fi hotspot themselves. If information has been stolen from your computer try to change your password and other information as soon as possible. Cancel credit cards and accounts if they were also on your laptop and you feel that they may have been taken. If you suspect that something is wrong with your Wi-Fi, complain to the management if you are somewhere other than the park but be aware that they are likely to do nothing.