The Republican National Convention (RNC) is in full swing, and while the theme seems to be “Make America Safe Again,” many attendees seem to have forgotten to keep their devices safe. In an experiment to both determine the average attendee’s device security and demonstrate the risk of connecting to public Wi-Fi, Avast Software set up fake Wi-Fi networks for attendees to connect to, and from there, managed to connect to the devices.

Avast’s team set up several networks, using names such as “Trump free Wifi” or “Google Starbucks,” which were designed to look as though they were set up for convention attendees. Upon connecting, trusting a random and unprotected network they found in a public setting, the users unwittingly gave Avast access to spy on their devices.

The Results

Over the course of a day, Avast found over a thousand attendees that were completely negligent in their device’s security. Over 60 percent of the users who connected had their identity completely exposed, and slightly less than half of them checked their email or used messenger apps.

Through their Wi-Fi networks, Avast could gleam a wide array of information from the RNC attendees. There was basic information, such as the type of devices they used (with over half using Apple devices, and over a quarter using Androids), their web browsers of choice, and their social media apps.

Additionally, Avast found some interesting information about app and website usage. A small portion (1.2 percent) of the attendees used online banking while at the convention, while 6.5 percent went shopping on Amazon. Notably, a little over 5 percent of the attendees were playing Pokemon GO (although it is logical to assume that there are several Poke Stops or even Gyms around the convention).

And perhaps most amusingly, several of the attendees were using dating apps such as Tinder or Grindr, while 0.24 percent of those present were watching online pornography while at the convention.

Staying Secure

Of course, Avast only scanned the data; nothing was collected or stored, so it cannot be misused. However, any hackers could easily set up malicious Wi-Fi networks of their own, and could steal the passwords, personal information, and even banking information of the attendees connecting to the network. With so many unprotected, unencrypted devices, it could wreak havoc on the lives of multitudes of attendees.

This serves as a reminder about the importance of device security. When connecting to random Wi-Fi networks in a public place, one must make sure their devices are safe from any attackers trying to gain access through it.

Photo by SiliconANGLE