GoogleChrome has started showing a beefed up warning that sites such as this forum are not secure because the site is not using the appropriate security protocols (SSL/TLS) to protect users passwords. The warning takes the form of the words Not Secure where the https:// normally is in the address bar. Perhaps it would be a good idea for users to ensure that their password for this forum is unique? I am not sure what the size of risk is - perhaps a bigger geek than me could comment. Can I ask if site admin have plans to migrate to an https:// address for the log in screen
The 'risk' is that any data submitted, be it username, password, this post I am posting is sent in clear text across the network you are connected to, as well as the wider internet. Using easily available programs and a bit of knowledge, this data can be 'sniffed' as its transported across a network and contents can be read.
Wifi is particularly vulnerable to this as its much easier to snoop on traffic, especially on open public wifi spots, thus somebodu else would have the ability to see your data sent to the server. It is so easy to forge a public wifi spot and have phones or devices auto connect to it. All you need to do is create a wifi point with the same SSID name as a popular zone, such as McDonalds, Tesco, Openzone......
It is *always* advisable regardless to have a different password per site as there is much more to it than just the transport. It could be that the website is storing your password in 'text' or a reversible encryption, or if you use a password that's popular, a rainbow table can help quickly identify what your password is if the site protects your password with a one way hash.
Turning on TLS is trivial in most cases, and the cert's can be purchased cheap.... but it depends on the hosting platform that is used!
