Why Hotel Wi-Fi Can Be Risky 🚨
Common Threats on Hotel Networks
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🔹 Man-in-the-Middle attacks intercept your traffic
🔹 Rogue hotspots mimic legitimate hotel Wi-Fi
🔹 Unencrypted HTTP sites leak personal information
🔹 Packet sniffers capture unprotected data
Designing a Practical Experiment 🔬
Equipment and Tools
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🔹 A laptop (Windows 10) and a smartphone (Android)
🔹 Packet-capture tool: Wireshark (Wireshark)
🔹 Speed-test app: Speedtest by Ookla
🔹 VPN client: NordVPN installed on both devices
Test Scenarios
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🔹 Scenario A: Connect to hotel Wi-Fi without VPN
🔹 Scenario B: Connect to hotel Wi-Fi with NordVPN enabled (OpenVPN UDP)
Step-by-Step Procedure ⚙️
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🔹 Step 1: Join the hotel network using default credentials or room number.
🔹 Step 2: Launch Wireshark and capture 2 minutes of traffic browsing HTTP sites.
🔹 Step 3: Record captured data, search for plaintext credentials or session cookies.
🔹 Step 4: Disconnect, enable NordVPN, reconnect to the same hotel network.
🔹 Step 5: Repeat Wireshark capture under identical browsing conditions.
🔹 Step 6: Run three consecutive speed tests in each scenario to measure performance impact.
Results and Analysis 📊
Data Interception Tests
Without VPN
With NordVPN
Speed and Performance
Expert Tips for Safe Hotel Wi-Fi 🌐
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🔹 Always enable your VPN before opening any app or browser.
🔹 Prefer HTTPS sites (look for the lock icon) even when using a VPN.
🔹 Disable automatic network sharing in your OS settings.
🔹 Use two-factor authentication on critical accounts.
🔹 Keep your VPN client up to date for the latest security patches.
