If you have to use public WiFi hotspots, it’s wise to also use a VPN to keep your activity private while you use that connection. In public, using shared WiFi carries risks (more on that below). When is it safe to use WiFi?Ī WiFi connection’s safety depends on its security settings and the source of the WiFi connection.
Any wireless-capable device in range can use it to connect to the Internet (using the phone’s connection to the cellular network) in the same way as they would use an Internet router at home. For example, most smartphones can produce a WiFi hotspot, which effectively turns them into an Internet-connected WiFi router. Nowadays, you can easily create a WiFi hotspot with a modern smart device. What is a WiFi hotspot?Ī WiFi hotspot is any physical location where a device can connect to the Internet through a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN). Pointy ears still isn’t a requirement for joining. In 2002, WECA was rebranded to WiFi Alliance, which features hundreds of renowned member companies today. Not only did the committee agree on a wireless communication standard, but they formed an alliance called the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance (WECA). Think of them like the council from Lord of the Rings but tech-savvy and with less pointy ears. Then, a group of industry experts formed a committee to decide. Until 1997, the world couldn’t quite agree on a common and compatible WiFi standard. How did WiFi become an official standard? Similarly, your Internet router can have a healthy Internet connection which feels like it’s slow to you, because of a less than ideal WiFi signal between you and your router. That’s why you can have a strong WiFi signal with a weak or nonexistent Internet connection. Your computer can communicate with your router through a WiFi signal (or a cable) even if your router isn’t online. What is the difference between WiFi and Internet? Can you have WiFi without Internet? Any suitably equipped device can connect to a WiFi network, regardless of whether it, or the network its connecting to, have an Internet connection or not. In a nutshell, WiFi is a wireless network that allows wireless-capable devices like computers, tablets, smartphone, modems, microwaves, fridges, and routers to connect with each other through radio frequency signals. The Alliance tasked marketing company Interbrand with creating a palatable term that they could trademark because “Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) wireless communication standard 802.11 technology” doesn’t quite roll off the tongue. The reality is that WiFi is a made-up marketing term that doesn’t really stand for anything. Many people assume that WiFi is short for “wireless fidelity” because the term “hi-fi” stands for “high fidelity.” Some members of the WiFi Alliance, the wireless industry organization that promotes wireless technologies and owns the trademark, may even have encouraged this misconception. We use WiFi to connect to the Internet, but what is it, and what does it stand for? How does it have such a catchy name, and why do we sometimes have a weak Internet connection with a strong WiFi signal and vice versa? Read on to answer these questions and more.
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