The Interior Ministry advised against using open Wi-Fi in public places.

Using open, free Wi-Fi in public places can lead to viruses infecting the user's device. The press service of the Russian Interior Ministry warned about this on Sunday, March 23.

"The use of free open Wi-Fi networks and chargers carries the risk of infection of a mobile device with malicious software aimed at stealing personal data, usernames, passwords, payment data, personal files, slowing down the operation of devices, as well as blocking them," the department noted, responding to a question from TASS.

If connecting to Wi-Fi or using charging in a public place is still necessary, the press service advised taking measures to protect personal data. So, during the connection, you should not enter usernames and passwords to access various sites, do not specify personal and payment information, and do not send any documentation over the network.

The Interior Ministry also advised against using open Wi-Fi when making financial transactions and logging into banking applications.

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Earlier, on March 18, the State Duma adopted in the first reading a draft law on combating telephone and Internet fraud. The document provides for the possibility of operational data exchange between government agencies, banks and digital platforms. It is noted that monitoring suspicious transactions will make it possible to detect fraudulent schemes almost instantly, block them, and then transfer them to law enforcement agencies.