January 25, 2010

Is airline Wi-Fi any good and is it safe?

Filed under: Internet, Tips, Viruses, Wireless Internet — Tags: airline, airline wi-fi, airline wifi, cloud computing, computer, computer recovery, computer repair, computer service, computer services, computer stores, computer support, computers, data recovery, file recovery, Gogo, internet safety, IT, IT department, laptop repair, recovery, repair computer, Row 44, safe airline internet, safe internet, Virtual Private Network, VPN, Wi-Fi, Wi-FI safety, WiFi, wifi safety — admin @ 3:17 pm

In-flight Wi-Fi brings a whole new meaning to the term ‘cloud computing’! In past years, the offerings were expensive, restrictive and inconsistent. But not anymore!

In our experience, speed, reliability and cost have all been reasonable. We’ve tried Gogo and expect Row 44 to be good, too. Just check with your airline before you go to see what is being offered.

Although Wi-Fi on airlines only works above 10,000 feet, the providers and airlines are not currently blocking access to any specific content or websites and are relying on passengers to behave themselves (this could change)!  One exception is voice traffic. The airlines decided that their passengers didn’t want to get stuck next to loud, obnoxious ‘deal makers’ flapping their gums about their latest conquests during these long flights.

Any device that is Wi-Fi enabled and has a browser can make use of the connection:  laptops, Netbooks, smartphones and even the iPod Touch and some handheld gaming systems should work.  You must have a browser in to get past the ‘I Agree’ terms of use gateway page.

As far as safety goes, this shouldn’t be approached any different than any other public Wi-Fi connection.  If you aren’t careful, you could expose your computer to others on the flight, just like in the airport or at a hotel (our column on public Wi-Fi safety is posted here: http://bit.ly/2ldfHp.)

Be very mindful that those in the row behind you can easily see through the gaps in the seats to your screen or lots of folks if you are seated in the aisle seat.  This means you should avoid typing in any sensitive information or websites that will display sensitive information.

As should be expected, if your company requires you to use a VPN (Virtual Private Network) to connect to the company network, you may have problems getting it all to work depending upon how restrictive your IT department has set the VPN to be (check with them before your flight for the best results).