4 ms·

Ask HN: How creepy are Google and Facebook wireless?

9 points by username223 11y ago

I've recently noticed "Google wireless" at various Starbucks, which has a click-through accepting Google's usual "we own you" ToS, and also an even creepier "Facebook wireless" at a couple of coffee shops. Any idea how much data they're harvesting if I don't use a VPN?

quadrangularis 11y ago
Yikes. I would use a VPN, preferably one configured to use UDP over port 53.
- jakeva 11y ago
  I've never heard of this. What is the advantage over just using https via a VPN verified to do no logging?
  - 0x400614 11y ago
    Not all websites are https enabled.
  - atmosx 11y ago
    With VPN all the traffic is encrypted, not just https... Plus , https might work for you, but your DNS requests are still plain text. You could use DNSCrypt and DNSSEC (combined). A VPN though, makes your life so much easier, you just open the connection and router everything through it.
    - jakeva 11y ago
      Yes, but that wasn't the question. The question was what does UDP over port 53 get you?
      - atmosx 11y ago
        Obfuscation.
      - rndmind 11y ago
        That's the port and protocol DNS queries used, therefore it is usually never blocked.