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That free Wi-Fi you’re using could end up costing you a lot more money than your hotspot data if it has been compromised, says Richard Frost, Head of Technology Solutions and Consulting at Armata Cyber Security.
Connectivity has become as much a part of society and everyday living as same-day deliveries and WhatsApp calling. So much so, that most people don’t think twice before joining a free Wi-Fi network or switching on Bluetooth in the car.
RELATED: Beware! Free WIFI could make cybercriminals access your bank accounts, NCC tells consumers
These are everyday conveniences that connect people to cars, music, shopping, taxis, and each other, but they also connect cybercriminals to bank accounts, systems and devices. The overlooked risks of Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and smart devices can turn convenience into compromise very, very quickly.
In 2025, cheap Bluetooth chips introduced a vulnerability to all devices
In 2025, cheap Bluetooth chips used in a wide variety of devices, from mobile phones to medical equipment, were shipped with undocumented commands in the chips themselves. Commands that introduced a vulnerability to all devices using them by potentially opening a back door into their systems.
Richard Frost, Head of Consulting at Armata Cyber Security
It’s not the only Bluetooth issue on the market either, the BlueSDK used in millions of modern vehicles permits remote code execution by attackers. Translated, it means that hackers could get into systems and remotely control a person’s car.
The technology itself is designed to be as convenient and accessible as possible. It is also very easy to hack. Most forms of Bluetooth compromise tend to be from man-in-the-middle (MITM) attacks, BlueBorn attacks, device impersonation, human error and the exploitation of outdated Bluetooth protocols. And the technology can misfire, even without criminal intent.
Calls can swap cars, music can stop playing in one and start in another, and these are the most innocuous examples. George Mason University USENIX Security Symposium 2025 published research on the nRootTag Bluetooth location tracking vulnerability which showed how the technology could be weaponised for mass device tracking. Imagine hackers knowing where you live, having access to your smart home, or following your activities on your device?
Free connectivity is supposed to be a benefit, but it has become more of a lure
Best practice for Bluetooth, despite its convenience, is to switch it off when it’s not in use. The same goes for public Wi-Fi. Free connectivity is supposed to be a benefit, but it has become more of a lure. If you scan for networks and connect to, for example, a Wi-Fi that has the same sounding name as the café you’re sitting in without verifying the address with the store manager, you could be connecting to a criminal’s laptop instead.
They’re providing a free and accessible connection using a 3G card while quietly running a sniffer which is monitoring everything you do, from passwords to banking transactions. It’s the classic free bandwidth trap which can have a devastating impact.
These sniffers, which are essentially network security tools, are capable of intercepting and analysing data travelling across a network. They’re very useful for cybersecurity teams as they play a pivotal role in identifying potential malicious data theft, but are also very much used by cybercriminals to get the data they want.
Wi-Fi locations are among the riskiest for credential and data theft
According to the World Economic Forum Cybersecurity Outlook 2025, free and public Wi-Fi locations are among the riskiest for credential and data theft incidents using sniffers for MITM and session hijacking.
These risks are growing for people using smart devices or building smart homes. Cameras, doorbells, and IoT devices are meant to add security, but when they are misconfigured or poorly secured themselves, they can create the opposite.
There have been multiple incidents where camera manufacturers have experienced hosting outages or platform flaws, resulting in users being able to access video feeds from cameras belonging to other customers. One of the most well-known is the Wyze camera glitch where a third-party caching error during the restoration of AWS services led to a mix-up across user and device authentication. Approximately 13,000 users got thumbnails of other people’s cameras.
These incidents highlight how something as simple as a design flaw or an unexpected vulnerability can have potentially damaging consequences. They also underscore the importance of being aware. Of recognising where the risks lie and understanding how to manage them proactively, not just after something has gone wrong.
Convenience without control is a security risk
For both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi best practice is to turn these options off on your devices when not in use. Always verify Wi-Fi networks directly with a company or staff before connecting so you know you’re not sitting on a false network, and add to this a privacy screen for both your phone and your laptop so you don’t have people shoulder surfing while you work. Finally, check your devices – all of them – to ensure they are correctly configured, updated and that any cloud storage solutions you use have strong security practices.
The lesson is simple. Convenience without control is a security risk. The same tools that make life easier also create vulnerabilities because people rarely realise how much management they actually need. The smallest habits, toggling a switch, covering a lens, questioning a network name, can make the difference between staying connected and being compromised.
*Original title: The overlooked risks of everyday connectivity
