Sitting in this coffee shop in Lisbon last month. Great espresso, decent wifi, laptop open. I'm in the middle of a client call when I notice the guy at the next table glancing over. Then it hit me. Forty-something strangers on this network right now. And I'm connected to it like everyone else.

The Short Answer

Yeah, you need a VPN. No debate here.

Public wifi is basically an open door. Your passwords, your emails, that proposal you're working on. All of it floating through the air where anyone with the right tools can grab it. Sounds dramatic? People actually do this. Regularly.

Good news though. VPN apps are dead simple. Install it, tap connect, done. Costs about as much as that oat milk latte you're sipping. No excuse not to use one.

Why Cafe WiFi Is Sketchy

A few things make coffee shop internet genuinely risky for work.

The Encryption Problem

Most cafe networks don't encrypt anything between your laptop and their router according to CISA security advisories. Your data just... travels through the air. Readable. Anyone with freely available software can intercept it. Takes maybe five minutes to learn how.

Everyone's on the Same Network

That person working on their screenplay? The student cramming for exams? The sketchy dude who's been there all day buying nothing? You're all on the same network. Same playground. Any one of them could be watching traffic.

Fake Networks Are Real

Someone sets up a hotspot called "CafeBliss_FreeWiFi" and your phone connects thinking it's legit. Now everything you do goes through their laptop first. This evil twin thing happens all the time. Takes like ten bucks of equipment.

Nobody's Watching Out for You

Your office has IT people monitoring for weird stuff. Cafes? The barista's job is making drinks, not network security. They just want happy customers with free internet.

Stuff That Actually Happens

Not hypothetical scenarios. Real things people do on public wifi.

Stealing Logins

You log into a site that doesn't use HTTPS? Your username and password travel in plain text. Gone. Even with HTTPS, attackers can see which sites you're hitting. This is why strong, unique passwords matter.

Sitting in the Middle

An attacker parks themselves between you and the internet as CISA warns about these man-in-the-middle attacks. Reads your messages. Changes things. Could swap out a legit download for malware. Could modify a banking page to steal credentials. Nasty stuff.

Grabbing Your Sessions

Don't even need your password sometimes. They grab your session cookie and suddenly they're logged in as you. No password required. Your bank, your email, your work tools. All accessible. Two-factor authentication helps protect against this.

Pushing Malware

Fake "Flash Player needs updating" popup. Compromised download. Malware injected into a file you were grabbing. All possible on sketchy wifi.

Targeted Attacks

Work with valuable data? Client info? Financial stuff? Cafes near business districts are hunting grounds. Some attackers specifically target remote workers. Easy pickings. Consider coworking spaces for more secure networks.

What a VPN Actually Does

A VPN wraps everything in encryption. Here's how that helps.

Everything Gets Scrambled

Your device to the VPN server? Encrypted. Military-grade AES-256 stuff according to NIST encryption standards. Someone intercepts your traffic? They see gibberish. Completely useless to them.

Your Activity Stays Hidden

Which websites you visit? Hidden. What you're downloading? Hidden. Your emails? Hidden. All anyone sees is encrypted data going to a VPN server. Nothing they can use.

Even Fake Networks Can't Hurt You

Accidentally connect to that sketchy "Free_WiFi" network? Doesn't matter. Your traffic is still encrypted. The attacker running it sees nothing useful.

Your Location Stays Private

Websites see the VPN server's IP, not yours. Harder to track you. Harder to know where you actually are.

DNS Stays Secure

Normally attackers can see which sites you're looking up. With a VPN, those lookups go through the encrypted tunnel too. No peeking at your browsing habits.

Other Good Habits

VPN is the big one. But stack these too.

Check the Network Name

Ask someone who works there. "Hey, what's your exact wifi name?" Don't just connect to whatever looks right. Attackers name their hotspots to blend in.

Don't Auto-Connect

After you leave, delete that network from your saved list. Your phone will try to reconnect next time it sees that name. Could be the real one. Could be someone's evil twin parked outside.

Keep Your Firewall Running

Windows Firewall, macOS built-in firewall. Keep them on. Blocks random incoming connections from other people on the network. Same principle as securing your home network.

Turn Off Sharing

File sharing, AirDrop, network discovery. All off when you're on public wifi. No reason to broadcast your presence.

Stick to HTTPS

That little padlock in your browser? Make sure it's there. Most browsers warn you now about HTTP sites. Good. Combined with a VPN, you've got layers.

Use Your Phone Sometimes

For super sensitive stuff? Your phone's hotspot is safer. You control that network. Cellular data is harder to mess with than wifi.

VPNs Worth Using

For cafe work specifically, check out our full VPN comparison guide. Quick highlights:

NordVPN

What I use most days. Fast enough that I don't notice it. Threat Protection blocks sketchy sites automatically. Servers everywhere. Works.

ExpressVPN

The premium option. Genuinely the fastest. Works in countries that try to block VPNs. Costs more but some people need that reliability.

Surfshark

Cheaper but still good. Unlimited devices on one account. Solid choice if budget matters or you've got lots of gadgets.

Mullvad

For privacy nerds. Pay anonymously if you want. Simple flat-rate pricing. No frills, maximum privacy.

All of them have apps for everything. Install takes a few minutes. Connecting is one tap.

Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

A little safer than completely open wifi. But the password just controls who gets on the network. Once someone's connected, they can still snoop. Still need a VPN.
Yep. On regular public wifi, anyone with basic tools can watch unencrypted traffic. Grab passwords. Watch what sites you hit. Not paranoia. Reality.
Cellular is generally safer. Harder to intercept. If you've got unlimited data, your phone's hotspot works fine. VPN on cafe wifi is more flexible though.
Barely. Ten to twenty percent slower maybe. You won't notice during normal work stuff. Email, docs, video calls. All fine. Worth the tradeoff.
Some do. Switch protocols in your VPN app. Try obfuscation mode if your VPN has it. Or just use your phone's hotspot instead.
HTTPS encrypts what you're exchanging with sites. But not which sites you're visiting. Not your DNS queries. Not all your apps. VPN covers everything.

Bottom Line

Working from cafes is genuinely great. Change of scenery. Good coffee. People watching when you need a mental break. But all that freedom means your data is floating around in the air.

A VPN costs maybe four bucks a month. Takes two seconds to turn on. Protects your work, your logins, your professional reputation.

New habit. Laptop opens at the cafe? VPN goes on first. Simple as that.