Probably a dumb question, but does Cloudflare Warp+ help at all in public Wi-Fi areas?
If you’re using someone else’s network (public WiFi, work’s, a friend’s when you visit) then you have to pass your packets through their networking gear (router, etc) and are subject to whatever snooping (if any) they apply. In most cases that is probably harmless, especially if you’re connecting to a HTTPS (i.e. secure) site.
If there is an attacker present in your path to rest of the Internet, then there is the risk they will mess with your DNS, and then spoof sites you might connect to in an attempt to play man in the middle. Accordingly, if safety seriously matters, it’s better to avoid relying on an unfriendly path for your DNS look-ups.
What does it mean when we say “seriously matters”? Just how “paranoid” should you really be? Everyone has different risk assessments. If you are likely to be a target in some way, then you will probably take more precautions. If you’re doing something harmless, like checking the weather, maybe you don’t need to worry so much. Since you seem concerned enough to ask the question, I guess you have some concerns… and maybe a VPN will help you rest easier.
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Thank you for your input. I was just wondering if when I check my mail or shop on Amazon, do I need a VPN when I am away from home. Leo always says to use a VPN when out and about. I have been using Express VPN. I also use Cloud Flare. They conflict at times. I just need something simple that works.
Unfortunately security doesn’t really work like an on/off switch, despite what most VPN providers’ marketing content would lead you to believe. Like PHolder said, you need to assess your own risk level and use appropriate tools.
So if the question is do you need a VPN… I would say no. I know Amazon’s website is TLS secured (https), and I’d bet that whatever mail provider you’re using is as well. I consider that to be sufficient for most people.
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I think knewman is right. It all depends on your threat model and risk tolerance.
1.1.1.1 is fine. And now that it does WARP too it’s probably all you need. I think Cloudflare is completely trustworthy.
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Ah, I see the original question differently now that I realize what WARP is. (I didn’t search before, oops, because it just seemed to be marketing for their technology to make their customer’s websites “fast.”)
But reading their site, I see that WARP is basically a VPN:
So… if you’re using WARP, you’re basically using a VPN, and, if you trust Cloudflare, then surely that is all 99.9% of the population would ever need.
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