Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 09-22-2019, 08:35 PM   #21
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: California
Posts: 7,616
SSL is not always secure. My last job for 9 years was for an internet protocol testing company. Half of our products were internet security related. VPN is the way to go.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Larry-NC View Post
That's an unnecessary precaution.

Your connection is https, not http. That means that your computer is encrypting the data with a key known only by the bank's server (and vice-versa). Other people can see that a packet is flowing from your IP address to the bank's IP address because they can read the address headers which have to be clear (unencrypted) to deliver the packet. But they cannot read the data following the headers since that is encrypted.

A VPN prohibits people from even seeing that the packet is flowing from your computer to the bank but most of us don't worry about that.
babock is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-22-2019, 08:53 PM   #22
NXR
Senior Member
 
NXR's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2019
Location: Family room couch
Posts: 4,526
Quote:
Originally Posted by babock View Post
SSL is not always secure. My last job for 9 years was for an internet protocol testing company. Half of our products were internet security related. VPN is the way to go.
I believe you meant to write:

VPN is the way to go if you can establish a VPN connection directly to the destination you want to go to.

Ray
__________________
2020 Georgetown GT5 34H5
2020 Equinox Premier AWD 2.0L/9-speed
NXR is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-22-2019, 09:22 PM   #23
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2018
Posts: 539
My Solution

Took delivery of a Rockwood this spring with a WiFiRanger 4, yes it will pull in weak WiFi signals but if the connection is slow or overloaded, well it won't over came that. My go to is a JetPack with Verizon under a unlimited plan. Still route it through the Ranger and have family and friends connect to the Ranger since I have both a guest account and family account on the Ranger. When I do find a good external account no reason for each device to re-establish a connection, setup the Ranger once and done.

For a secure connection I have a Ubuntu server at home hosting an OpenVPN server, so each of my or the wife's devices run an OpenVPN app to setup a secure connection back to the house when on a public WiFi even if its running through the Ranger.... thats still a public connection.
Theb2b is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-22-2019, 09:53 PM   #24
Senior Member
 
LittleBill's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2019
Location: Joliet, IL
Posts: 1,339
What about the King WiFiMax?

When I was at the Rally in Goshen, King was there and their system seemed impressive. Supposedly even though you get connected to a public WiFi the King treats your setup as your own private network with encryption out and back. Most of all the Forest River new units that were on display had King WiFiMax's in them. I am seriously thinking to have one installed with the directional antenna. What are you thoughts on the King WiFiMax?
__________________

2018 Cedar Creek 36CK2 (40.5ft)
TST Cap System (Tire Monitoring)
2021 Chevy 3500HD Crew Cab 4X4 DRW Duramax (replaced 2015 Chevy 2500HD Crew Cab 4X4 Duramax)
Curt A25 5th Wheel Hitch (replaced Demco 18K Auto-slide)
LittleBill is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-22-2019, 10:12 PM   #25
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2015
Posts: 4,223
Quote:
Originally Posted by Theb2b View Post
Took delivery of a Rockwood this spring with a WiFiRanger 4, yes it will pull in weak WiFi signals but if the connection is slow or overloaded, well it won't over came that. My go to is a JetPack with Verizon under a unlimited plan. Still route it through the Ranger and have family and friends connect to the Ranger since I have both a guest account and family account on the Ranger. When I do find a good external account no reason for each device to re-establish a connection, setup the Ranger once and done.

For a secure connection I have a Ubuntu server at home hosting an OpenVPN server, so each of my or the wife's devices run an OpenVPN app to setup a secure connection back to the house when on a public WiFi even if its running through the Ranger.... thats still a public connection.
If you’re connecting the Ranger to the cellular hotspot how much does the connection slow? My home network will always show 350 to 400 mbps download speeds. When a WiFi Ranger was connected to my WiFi the best it could produce was under 50 mbps. Haven’t looked at the speed difference with the Nighthawk or Jetpack. VPN connections seem to reduce speed by about 25% or so.

I believe that for our purposes (camping, traveling, anything other than real work) speed is not a significant factor. I don’t see any difference in performance when streaming video at 5 mbps vs 55 mbps. It works just fine at the lower speed. The only time I can see the downside of the lower speed is when I connect to a very large database stored on my home based server (Filemaker system). But, once I suffer through the extra 5-6 seconds to get the program started there is no perceptible difference in operational speed as long as my connection is greater than two mbps. The problem is most CG Wi-Fi systems rarely get much over one mbps.
__________________
BIRDS AREN’T REAL
emm-dee is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-22-2019, 10:14 PM   #26
Senior Member
 
Garrette's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Posts: 1,485
How secure are accounts setup with an text or email verification code sent after your password has been entered?
__________________
2014 Sunseeker 3170 DSF
Dorothy, Garrette and Miss Bella.
Retired and having fun.
Garrette is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-22-2019, 10:40 PM   #27
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2018
Posts: 539
Quote:
Originally Posted by emm-dee View Post
If you’re connecting the Ranger to the cellular hotspot how much does the connection slow? My home network will always show 350 to 400 mbps download speeds. When a WiFi Ranger was connected to my WiFi the best it could produce was under 50 mbps. Haven’t looked at the speed difference with the Nighthawk or Jetpack. VPN connections seem to reduce speed by about 25% or so.

I believe that for our purposes (camping, traveling, anything other than real work) speed is not a significant factor. I don’t see any difference in performance when streaming video at 5 mbps vs 55 mbps. It works just fine at the lower speed. The only time I can see the downside of the lower speed is when I connect to a very large database stored on my home based server (Filemaker system). But, once I suffer through the extra 5-6 seconds to get the program started there is no perceptible difference in operational speed as long as my connection is greater than two mbps. The problem is most CG Wi-Fi systems rarely get much over one mbps.
I have seen upwards of 55 mbps on the jetpack through the Ranger but speed is directly related to signal strength, stronger the signal the faster the speed. I am also using a MiMo antenna hooked up to the jetpack and it will boost or rather get a stronger signal then a cell phone so it will preform better than a cell phone. As for signal degradation, yes the more hoops you have it will impact signal performance. But for surfing the net its minimal and as for streaming Prime movies I don't see any difference IF I have a strong signal. IE 4G and one bar with everybody else not using the internet. If 2 bars or more don't experience slow down with streaming content.
Theb2b is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-22-2019, 10:55 PM   #28
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: California
Posts: 7,616
Quote:
Originally Posted by NXR View Post
I believe you meant to write:

VPN is the way to go if you can establish a VPN connection directly to the destination you want to go to.

Ray
Actually its not what I meant. Yes its true that a VPN connection all the way to the destination would be best but I don't wnat to be on a public WiFI with the possibility of packet sniffers recording everything I am sending and recieving. Even if my password is being sent encrypted, I don't want people viewing what I show on my screen. Any banking or email is done through my phone's hotspot which is running VPN.
babock is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-23-2019, 07:23 AM   #29
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2015
Posts: 4,223
Quote:
Originally Posted by babock View Post
Actually its not what I meant. Yes its true that a VPN connection all the way to the destination would be best but I don't wnat to be on a public WiFI with the possibility of packet sniffers recording everything I am sending and recieving. Even if my password is being sent encrypted, I don't want people viewing what I show on my screen. Any banking or email is done through my phone's hotspot which is running VPN.
Little more info, please. You say “banking or email is done through the phone hotspot” but are you really saying you’re using the phone cellular connection. The hotspot is a Wi-Fi setup to allow external devices to use the cellular system. Wouldn’t that open the system up allowing unwanted access to transmitted data via the Wi-Fi signal?
__________________
BIRDS AREN’T REAL
emm-dee is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-23-2019, 08:45 AM   #30
Senior Member
 
DouglasReid's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Maurice, LA
Posts: 4,095
Quote:
Originally Posted by emm-dee View Post
Since 99% of campgrounds that have wi-fi have a system that is so weak it's a complete waste of time and money to get "repeater" equipment. You would be a lot better off to go with a cellular hotspot like a Netgear Nighthawk or Jetpack MiFi box. A lot more reliable than public Wi-Fi and a lot more secure, especially if you use it via a VPN.

No need for a router since those hotspots can handle up to 15 connections.
We did the same. We have an Alfa booster and router combo but it does not increase the bandwidth, only provides a good secure connection to a weak system.

We have begun using one of our phones as a Hotspot (unlimited data with our Verizon plan for our phones)

Best solution we have found to date as long as there is Verizoncell service available.
__________________
2012 Wildcat Sterling 32RL, Gladiator Qr35 ST235/85R16 Load rating G, TST 507 TPMS w/ Flow-thru Sensors & Repeater, Reese Sidewinder 16K Pin Box, PI EMS HW50C
2009 Chevy Silverado 2500HD CCSB LTZ Diesel, Fumoto Oil Drain Valve, Turbo Brake activated, 39 gal Aux Tank W/ Fuel Pump transfer, Air Lift Loadlifter 5000 air bags.
DouglasReid is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-26-2019, 06:14 PM   #31
Senior Member
 
sfsgm's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Posts: 426
Quote:
Originally Posted by DavidBo View Post
I've been using NordVPN for a bit over a year now and I'm pretty happy with it. I believe you can use up to 6 devices on one account, and they have apps for smartphones. I assume it can be set up on a smart TV, but I've never tried. It will also work with routers that support OpenVPN.
I love it when the antivirus on my laptop sends out little popups trying sell their VPN by telling me "Your location (Provo, Utah) is unprotected!", when I live in Texas. I guess that means it's working!
I also use Nord and you are correct 6 devices. They had a pretty good "sale" on their service recently. Several years for a little over $100.

Have you ever tried using a sever from, say, the Ukraine or Russia?
__________________
2016 Nike Take Down Wrestling Shoes
42 ft square Dollamur high school wrestling mat
sfsgm is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-26-2019, 07:01 PM   #32
NXR
Senior Member
 
NXR's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2019
Location: Family room couch
Posts: 4,526
Quote:
Originally Posted by babock View Post
Actually its not what I meant. Yes its true that a VPN connection all the way to the destination would be best but I don't wnat to be on a public WiFI with the possibility of packet sniffers recording everything I am sending and recieving. Even if my password is being sent encrypted, I don't want people viewing what I show on my screen. Any banking or email is done through my phone's hotspot which is running VPN.
They cannot do that if it's HTTPS. This (and Snowden) is why over the past few years there has been a dramatic uptick in the number of websites running HTTPS. These forums excepted, of course...

The only way your actual screen can be viewed is if you got malicious software (malware) on your PC or you're using some type of remote access or remote viewing software like TeamViewer and it got hijacked (usually from using the same username and password on multiple sites).

Or someone is doing it with binoculars through your windows. No, not a joke. It's called "shoulder surfing".

Ray

Ray
__________________
2020 Georgetown GT5 34H5
2020 Equinox Premier AWD 2.0L/9-speed
NXR is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-26-2019, 07:10 PM   #33
NXR
Senior Member
 
NXR's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2019
Location: Family room couch
Posts: 4,526
Quote:
Originally Posted by Garrette View Post
How secure are accounts setup with an text or email verification code sent after your password has been entered?
They are far more secure than not using them. But they are now considered weak because too many cellular companies have had their call centers talked into moving someone's cell number to a fraudster. Google Authenticator and similar offline systems are much better.

This is a highly reputable site where you can enter your email addresses and you'll see which breaches they got stolen from. You also can set up alerts if you suddenly show up. https://haveibeenpwned.com/

You also can enter old passwords on this page and see if they were stolen in any breaches. It doesn't mean they were from your account but it does show that many people who think they have a super-secret password actually do not. https://haveibeenpwned.com/Passwords

I used to use the first link in Lunch-n-Learn sessions. The person whose work email address got exposed in the most breaches got a prize.

The picture is for a password of maryhadalittlelamb

Ray
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	Password.PNG
Views:	64
Size:	79.0 KB
ID:	215865  
__________________
2020 Georgetown GT5 34H5
2020 Equinox Premier AWD 2.0L/9-speed
NXR is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-26-2019, 08:12 PM   #34
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2018
Posts: 14
I use the Pepwave SOHO ... it supports wifi as wan. Easily configured. I use my hotspot as the fallback wan source and connect the Pepwave to the park wifi as primary wan source. Works great.

https://www.amazon.com/Peplink-SUS-S...s%2C165&sr=8-1
LCraddock is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-26-2019, 09:12 PM   #35
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Palm City, FL
Posts: 298
Router Use In A Campground

Quote:
Originally Posted by UK Cards Fan View Post
What router do you use in motor home to make it secure? We have a 2015 27' Sunseeker with 3 slides. I'm looking for a repeater for stronger signal and "our" own secure wi-fi within our motor home. When we sign onto the campground unsecure wireless, we notice a lot of secure Netgear. Asus has been recommended to us. It has also been recommended to get a VPN account, Tunnelbear. Any thoughts/suggestions please. Thanks
I am no wiz at internet connection technologies so I am a little puzzled here about how you would employ a secure router in a campground. It sounds as if, in a campground, you can receive the unsecured campground Wi-Fi via your router and make it secure with your router before it reaches your PC. Is that right?

I thought a router had to connect to your Internet provider and I can't understand how you can connect to your Internet provide on a campground away from home. Am I missing something here?
hikerjohn7 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-26-2019, 10:00 PM   #36
Senior Member
 
Major Oz's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2016
Posts: 219
Quote:
Originally Posted by UK Cards Fan View Post
What router do you use in motor home to make it secure? We have a 2015 27' Sunseeker with 3 slides. I'm looking for a repeater for stronger signal and "our" own secure wi-fi within our motor home. When we sign onto the campground unsecure wireless, we notice a lot of secure Netgear. Asus has been recommended to us. It has also been recommended to get a VPN account, Tunnelbear. Any thoughts/suggestions please. Thanks

There is no such thing as "secure" campground wifi.


When you use theirs...or McDucks'.....or Walmarts', etc just use it for innocuous stuff,


But for banks, brokerages, or other sensitive stuff, use your cell phone hotspot.


Fussing with VPN's is seldom worth it.

(I don't trust their "trust me" anyhow)
__________________
2014 King Ranch Ecoboost Screw, 3.73.....2019 Palamino 27RLSS (customized)
Retired AF Mustang.....Picker always looking to jam.
Major Oz is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-26-2019, 10:20 PM   #37
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2018
Posts: 205
All these “free” VPN’s are /can be malware just stealing your data. Google/ Android apps were just found many of the VPN apps were actually just collecting your info, some from Russia.

The unsecured WiFi at public places just means there is no password meaning anyone can get on it and scan/try to hack it and other machines. The websites you are going to, if encrypted (https) even a sniffer can’t see the traffic. Maybe avoid your banking websites at a minimum. I highly doubt the camper down the street is scanning computers on the WiFi. Then goes out to roast marshmallows
WolfPup2018 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-26-2019, 11:17 PM   #38
Retired Old Fart
 
dward51's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2018
Location: McDonough, GA
Posts: 971
How many of the old tech guys here remember "wardriving" back in the day?
__________________
Just the 2 of us in a...
"Currently between trailers"
Sold the 246RKS in 2023
dward51 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-27-2019, 12:01 AM   #39
Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2017
Posts: 62
Quote:
Originally Posted by UK Cards Fan View Post
What router do you use in motor home to make it secure? We have a 2015 27' Sunseeker with 3 slides. I'm looking for a repeater for stronger signal and "our" own secure wi-fi within our motor home. When we sign onto the campground unsecure wireless, we notice a lot of secure Netgear. Asus has been recommended to us. It has also been recommended to get a VPN account, Tunnelbear. Any thoughts/suggestions please. Thanks

I bought a Winegard Connect 2.0 with 4G for our RV and added it to my Verizon Wireless account. I also just found that Winegards Roadlink C2 has partnered with AT&T to get you unlimited data for $30.00 a month which is by far the best deal out there.
https://www.amazon.com/Winegard-WF2-...sr=1-1-catcorr
harleyfltri is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-27-2019, 12:10 AM   #40
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2018
Posts: 205
WolfPup2018 is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
campground, mpg, sunseeker

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by Forest River, Inc. or any of its affiliates. This is an independent, unofficial site.



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 01:03 AM.