While the parent has a valid point, I agree with you in the sense that such an attitude doesn't effectively convey the intended message. I think it's unrealist

While the parent has a valid point, I agree with you in the sense that such an attitude doesn't effectively convey the intended message. I think it's unrealistic to expect the average non-technical user to understand the distinction between HTTPS and something being "private". That said, I don't really know of a better way to phrase it; describing this sort of stuff to non-technical users is a bit of a minefield, so I can certainly relate to the solution of "just assume the worst and nothing can go wrong", because if followed, it's unarguably the safest thing to do. It's a solution in the same sense as "teaching abstinence to teenagers to avoid unwanted pregnancies" is, which is to say that it's largely ineffective at solving the problem, despite being the most effective of all options.