I'm wondering about privacy while using my employer's public WiFi at the store. I know they can probably track the websites I visit, but how do they know it's me specifically? For instance, if I visited Amazon, they might see that someone accessed the site at a particular time, but how would they connect that to me? I assume it has to do with the IP address, but I'm not sure how that works in this context. Can anyone explain?
2 Answers
They can definitely track who is browsing what. Each connected device has a unique MAC address. If they have access to the network data, they can see the activity tied to that address. It's not foolproof, though, since they would need to know which MAC address belongs to which device that you use.
It would require some detective work, like matching it with your work schedule. But if you’re using personal devices on a public WiFi, it complicates things.
They can track activity based on MAC address, your computer name, and IP address. All of those can help them identify who is using the network. So, yes, they could know if you've visited particular sites unless you're using a private connection.
What if I’m just using my mobile phone on their WiFi?
So how do they even connect the MAC address to me?