Defend your device from unsafe Wi-Fi connections

For many businesses, the flexibility to work from anywhere is a significant advantage; with employees working while on the go, productivity is enhanced. Whether at a coffee shop or an airport, many devices use public Wi-Fi to stay connected. However, this convenience comes with a serious risk: most public Wi-Fi networks lack proper encryption, making your business data highly susceptible to cyber threats. When employees connect to these unsecured networks, they inadvertently expose their private business information to cybercriminals who can easily intercept their connections.

To combat cybercriminals accessing your data via public Wi-Fi, Microsoft has announced that its Defender software will now automatically detect and notify you of unsafe Wi-Fi connections and add an additional VPN layer while you're online.

What is Microsoft Defender?

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Microsoft Defender, included at no extra cost as part of your Microsoft 365 Family, Personal, and Business subscription, is a simple but effective way to protect your employees' digital lives. If you currently use Windows machines, Defender will automatically be your default security option; however, Microsoft is gradually introducing these features to clients on macOS, Android, and iOS.

What does Microsoft Defender do?

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The Microsoft support team states - "Defender might detect a Wi-Fi network as unsafe if the characteristics match one or more of the detection heuristics that Microsoft Defender uses to scan Wi-Fi networks. These heuristics indicate a likelihood of malicious activity occurring on that Wi-Fi network. If you see such a detection, we recommend turning on Microsoft Defender VPN to encrypt traffic from your device for added safety".

Unsafe Wi-Fi hotspots allow cybercriminals to intercept data, spoof websites, collect credentials, and initiate threats to steal private data and access devices.

Defender will check the security parameters of Wi-Fi networks prior to network connection and then alert users if the connection is not secured.
Microsoft assures that the service is anonymised and only collects three data points: the duration of the VPN use, the VPN bandwidth utilised, and Wi-Fi hotspot names that are detected as malicious.

Our expert team can help you keep your employees safe both in the workplace and on the go.

Chat to us - 01482 420150 | sales@theonepoint.co.uk