They can steal passwords through different methods, such as using Phishing attacks, keyloggers, fake programs… The truth is that hackers always update themselves and look for new strategies. In this article, we are going to tell you about a new attack that is based on Wi-Fi connections. We are going to show you how your password can be stolen and how you can protect yourself. You will see that it is very simple and just by taking into account some key points, you will be able to maintain security.
This is an attack known as Wiki-Eve. What it does is intercept plain text transmissions from phones that connect to a Wi-Fi network. It will deduce the keystrokes and thus detect the password. According to security researchers who have discovered this threat, it can be 90% successful. Of course, it does not affect all passwords.
WiKI-Eve, an attack to steal keys
The good news is that it does not affect all types of keys. What’s more, it will only affect those passwords that only have numbers. If your passwords have letters and other symbols, you will not be a victim of this attack. Now, the truth is that many people still make the mistake of using passwords that only have letters or only numbers.
WiKI-Eve exploits a feature they introduced with the Wi-Fi 5 protocol and which is known as BFI. This allows devices to send information about their position to the routers to which they connect and thus receive the signal with greater precision, which will be beneficial to have good speed and stability.
But what is happening? That BFI feature, you will exchange information in plain or unformatted text. This data can be easily intercepted by a hacker. You won’t need to decrypt any keys as it is in plain text. This can expose your passwords when connecting to Wi-Fi. It acts when you use an application in which you are going to put the password.
How to avoid the attack
What can you do to prevent your passwords from being stolen through this method? Something very simple is to use complex passwords. As we mentioned, this attack, which has a 90% success rate, only works with numerical passwords. If you use passwords that have letters (and also upper and lower case), special symbols and also numbers, you will have a much more robust and difficult to crack password.
It will also influence the length of that password. The more characters it has, the better. A 6-character password is not the same as a 12-character password. Each additional letter, number or symbol you enter will make that password increase its security exponentially and you will be more protected.
On the other hand, both to avoid attacks of this type and any other, it is important to take precautions whenever you connect to a Wi-Fi network. You can use a good vpnsuch as Surfshark or NordVPN, and thus encrypt the connection when you use a public network that could be dangerous.
Having a good antivirus that can detect malware, as well as updating the system to correct errors, are two more recommendations that you can take into account. This will help you avoid a wide variety of attacks that could compromise your passwords or any personal data you have on the device. You should always protect any device at home.
