Hacker shocks interviewer after showing what he can do with the building's Wi-Fi

In the digital age when so much of our information is shared and stored online, staying safe while browsing has never been more important.

There are any number of ways that people might try to break into a device, and from install mirroring software, tracking, or steal information like passwords.

In extreme cases, it can even result in finances being compromised.

Getty Stock Photo

Other hacks may not be apparent on your device, but see your data stolen and then sold off to a third party wholesale so they can throw out scam messages.

Remember, a scam might seem obvious to you, but it only takes one person to click out of thousands for it to succeed.

But how do hackers gain access to our devices?

Well, during an interview on the Shawn Ryan Show, a professional 'ethical' hacker - who actually works to catch online child predators - showed off one way of many that they can do that.

This method involves going in through the Wi-Fi network.

So, let's say you're out and about and you connect to Wi-Fi in say, a coffee shop or an airport.

The Shawn Ryan Show

Except, that's not the Wi-Fi you want, it's actually a way for a hacker to gain access to your device including passcodes, everything.

The hacker, Ryan Montgomery, explained: "It's called a man in the middle attack. So if I'm on the same network as you, I can essentially control the traffic as if I was the modem or router.

"So instead of when you type google.com, instead of your computer telling the router you want google.com, you're telling my computer, you want google.com, and I'm giving you what I what I'm telling you google.com is."

Montgomery went on to explain that you can create any number of 'dummy' networks that people might connect to while out and about.

He then used his homemade tool to do this and showed all the networks in the building to Ryan on a smartphone, leaving the host shocked.

Montgomery said: "What you do is you just scan the local area, and then I know all the networks names around here, and then I'll target all of them at the same time."

So, how can you avoid this?

Well the main thing to would be to simply avoid using free Wi-Fi when you're out and about, though that's not always practical.

You could get around that by making sure that you have a contract which always has enough data, and planning ahead when travelling so you don't get slapped with any extra charges.

That way you can still access what you need to, and don't have to use free Wi-Fi.

At a pinch, you could even use your phone to hotspot.

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