Using long-range Antenna to connect to Public Wi-Fis from a safe distance

Published in the category: Network

It is possible to access/connect to remote distant Public Wi-Fis from a distance using a cheap directional Antenna that looks like this.

These antennas are widely available on various online shops for a cheap price (Amazon, AliExpress, Banggood …). The only issue is that they are not discrete, and you might have to find a way to hide it (for instance in a Poster cardboard container in a Backpack). Or in a large enough Bag. Optionally (but riskier) you could even consider using it from your home if you have a nice Window view to various places where some Public Wi-Fi is available.

Such antennas need to be combined with specific USB adapters that have an external Antenna plug and sufficiently high power to use them.

I would recommend the AWUS036 series in the Alfa brand of adapters (see https://www.alfa.com.tw/ ^{[Archive.org]}). But you could also go with some other brands if you want such as the TP-Link TL-WN722 (see https://www.tp-link.com/us/home-networking/usb-adapter/tl-wn722n/ ^{[Archive.org]}).

See this post for a comparison of various adapters: https://www.wirelesshack.org/best-kali-linux-compatible-usb-adapter-dongles.html ^{[Archive.org]} (Usually those antennas are used by Penetration Testers to probe Wi-Fis from a distance and are often discussed within the scope of the Kali Linux distribution).

The process is simple:

Plugin and install your USB adapter on your Host OS.
Do not forget to randomize your MAC Address in case you bought this adapter online to prevent traceability (this is enabled by default in Tails).
Connect the Long-Range Antenna to the USB adapter (in place of the supplied one).
Get to a convenient spot where you have a distant view of a place with Public Wi-Fi available (this can be a rooftop for instance), but you could also imagine hiding the Antenna in some bag and just sit on a bench somewhere.
Point the Directional Antenna in the direction of the Public Wi-Fi.
Connect to the Wi-Fi of your choice.

Do not forget tho that this will only delay a motivated adversary. Your signal can be triangulated easily by a motivated adversary in a matter of minutes once they reach the physical location of the Wi-Fi you’re connecting to (for instance using a device such as AirCheck https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8FV2QZ1BPnw ^[Invidious], also see their other products here https://www.netally.com/products/ ^{[Archive.org]}). These products can easily be deployed on mobile units (in a Car for instance) and pinpoint your location in a matter of minutes.

Ideally, this should “not be an issue” since this guide provides multiple ways of hiding your origin IP using VPNs and Tor. But if you are in a situation where VPN and Tor are not an option, then this could be your only security.