Brits have delivered a fairly unambiguous verdict on giving the government access to their encrypted messages: no, thanks. New polling commissioned by the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) found that 93 percent of British adults believe they have a right to private conversations online, while 89 percent think nobody should be able to access their personal messages without a court order. Perhaps more awkwardly for Westminster, two-thirds said they would not trust either the current government or any future one with the power to access encrypted messages. That distrust crosses political lines. Among people who voted in the 2024 general election, 58 percent of Labour voters said they wouldn't trust any government with the power, alongside 59 percent of Conservatives, 56 percent of Liberal Democrats, 69 percent of Greens and 75 percent of Reform voters. Public First did the asking, polling 2,000 British adults for CDT in April and weighting the results to reflect the wider population. The margin of error is 2.2 percentage points. The findings land as the UK government's appetite for slurping encrypted data continues to collide with the tech industry's insistence that encryption works best when nobody has a spare key lying around. That fight became particularly public when Apple withdrew Advanced Data Protection from UK users after receiving a secret Technical Capability Notice (TCN) under the Investigatory Powers Act. Apple challenged the order, and while the US government later said Britain had withdrawn its demand for access to Americans' encrypted data, reports have since suggested another TCN was issued focusing on British users. Despite the international row, 55 percent of those polled hadn't heard about the Apple notice at all. Once presented with the idea, enthusiasm remained thin. Just 12 percent backed the government being able to secretly order companies to provide access to users' information while preventing those companies from revealing the order. A third said the government shouldn't have that power at all, while another 41 percent wanted greater transparency or parliamentary oversight. Nor were respondents particularly sold on sacrificing security for law enforcement. 53 percent said the security risks of accessing encrypted messages outweighed the benefits, compared with 28 percent who thought the benefits came out on top. The reasons will sound familiar to anyone who has followed the encryption debate for more than five minutes. 84 percent worried that mechanisms allowing access to encrypted messages could introduce vulnerabilities for hackers and criminals, while 82 percent were concerned the powers could be abused. Knowing someone might be watching could also change how people behave. 65 percent said they'd become more cautious about what they liked, shared or commented on, while 41 percent said they'd self-censor criticism of public institutions or government officials. CDT is not a disinterested observer: the digital rights group campaigns for strong encryption and commissioned the research as part of that work. The polling itself, however, was carried out independently. Commenting on the research, Jim Killock, executive director of Open Rights Group, said: “The British public instinctively know that being able to communicate privately is crucial to our individuality and to the survival of a free and open society. “The government persists with the myth that it can weaken encryption to target the bad guys only. Attacks on the security of our phones, security tools and messaging apps harm us all and make our democracy weaker.” None of this is likely to end Westminster's long-running pursuit of encrypted communications. But if ministers were hoping the public was enthusiastically behind them, the numbers suggest otherwise. ®

Free airport Wi-Fi can be useful when you’re waiting for a flight. But this week’s biggest security story is a reminder that there are two different ways your information can be exposed when you connect.

One risk happens while your information is traveling across a public network. Another happens after a company collects and stores information about you.

A cyberattack affecting three major UK airports illustrates the difference, and why travelers need protection for both.

What happened in the Manchester Airports Group cyberattack?

Manchester Airports Group, or MAG, confirmed that an unauthorized third party obtained customer information connected with Manchester Airport, London Stansted Airport, and East Midlands Airport.

According to reports, the affected information came from car park, airport lounge, Fast Track bookings, and airport Wi-Fi registrations. MAG says the stolen data includes email addresses, phone numbers, vehicle registration numbers, and postcodes. The company says the affected system did not contain customers’ payment or banking details.

The Telegraph reported that approximately 8.7 million passengers were affected and that more than 90% of the stolen records were email addresses, largely because travelers provide an email address when registering for free airport Wi-Fi. The attackers reportedly demanded a ransom, which MAG declined to pay.

MAG says airport operations and passenger safety were not affected and that it has contained access to the compromised systems.

For travelers, however, the breach creates another concern: what criminals might do with the stolen information next.

Why stolen airport data can lead to convincing scams

An email address alone might not seem particularly sensitive. But combined with a phone number, postcode, vehicle registration, or knowledge that someone has interacted with a particular airport, it becomes more useful to a scammer.

That information can help criminals make phishing emails and texts feel believable.

A message might claim there is a problem with your airport parking reservation, ask you to confirm a Fast Track booking, or say you need to pay an outstanding airport charge. Someone who recently used the airport may be much more inclined to click.

That is one reason breach victims should be especially cautious about unexpected messages that appear connected to the organization involved.

Does a VPN protect you from an airport Wi-Fi data breach?

Not from this kind of breach.

A VPN, or virtual private network, encrypts the internet traffic traveling between your device and the VPN service. Think of it as putting your online activity inside a protected tunnel while it crosses a public network.

That matters at airports, hotels, cafés, and other places where many people share the same Wi-Fi. McAfee Secure VPN can encrypt your connection and can be configured to turn on automatically when you join an unsecured network.

But that is different from what happened here.

If you voluntarily give an airport your email address to register for Wi-Fi, that email address may then be stored in the airport operator’s systems. A VPN cannot prevent a later breach of that company’s database.

In short: A VPN helps protect information in transit. It does not control what happens to information you give directly to a company.

Both risks matter.

Before, During, and After a Data Breach

Before a breach: Share only the information a service genuinely requires. Use strong, unique passwords for online accounts, and use a VPN when connecting to public Wi-Fi.

During a breach: Look for information directly from the affected company rather than relying on messages arriving by email or text. Criminals often take advantage of security incidents by sending fake “account protection” or “verify your information” messages.

After a breach: Watch for unusual emails, calls, texts, and account activity. Be particularly suspicious when someone creates urgency or asks for passwords, verification codes, payment information, or money.

MAG specifically warns that it will not unexpectedly contact customers asking for payment card information, banking details, or passwords.

At a Glance

The breach affected customer information from bookings and airport Wi-Fi registrations.

8.7 million passengers were affected

MAG says banking and payment details were not stored in the affected system.

Stolen contact information can still make phishing and impersonation scams more convincing.

A VPN protects your connection on public Wi-Fi, but it cannot prevent a company from later suffering a database breach.

Be particularly cautious about unexpected airport-related emails and texts following the incident.

How McAfee Helps

Secure VPN helps address the other major risk associated with airport Wi-Fi: someone attempting to monitor your traffic while you use an unsecured network. McAfee Secure VPN encrypts your connection and can automatically activate on unsecured Wi-Fi, helping keep browsing activity and information transmitted from your device private.

Identity Monitoring keeps watch for your personal information associated with breaches, giving you an opportunity to act when exposed information is detected.

And because stolen email addresses and phone numbers can fuel follow-up phishing attempts, Scam Detector can identify suspicious texts, emails, and other QR codes before you act on them.

The broader lesson is layered protection: protect your connection while you’re online, then keep watching for misuse of information that companies already hold.

Other Scam and Security News This Week

Hackers claim breach of major data center provider. The ShinyHunters group claims it stole extensive corporate and employee information from U.S. data center company CyrusOne and demanded $13 million.

CyrusOne had not publicly confirmed the hackers’ claims when TechRadar reported the story, so the alleged scale of the breach remains unverified.
Source: TechRadar

Man accused of posing as a 49ers player in $1.3 million romance scam. Federal prosecutors allege that two men defrauded at least 26 women after one portrayed himself online as a wealthy San Francisco 49ers player and the other posed as his financial adviser.

Investigators say fake banking apps and fabricated investment balances helped make the scheme appear legitimate; both defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice

Fake sports streams target fans looking for the game. The Better Business Bureau warns that scammers post supposed free streaming links on social media, sometimes tagging real schools or teams, then direct fans to sites designed to collect payment or personal information instead of showing a game.

Go to the team, school, league, or known streaming provider directly rather than trusting a link in a social post — and remember that HTTPS alone does not prove a website is legitimate.
Source: Better Business Bureau

This Week’s Safety Tips

“Once you give your information to a company, you can’t completely control what happens to it,” says McAfee’s Tyler McGee. “But you can limit what you share and take steps to protect yourself if your information is exposed.”

“Only provide what’s needed, use unique passwords and turn on multi-factor authentication where you can. Tools like McAfee’s identity monitoring can also alert you if your information shows up in a known breach. And be extra cautious after a breach,” he says. “Scammers can use exposed information to make messages about a booking, refund or account look much more convincing. If you get one, go directly to the company’s website or app rather than clicking the link.”

✓ Use a VPN on public Wi-Fi. Encrypt your connection before checking email, shopping, banking, or signing into important accounts.

✓ Treat breach-related messages cautiously. Navigate to the company’s official website yourself rather than clicking a link in an unexpected email or text.

✓ Use unique passwords. A password stolen from one service should never unlock another account.

✓ Verify before sending money. Whether someone claims to be an athlete, investment adviser, streaming provider, or familiar company, independently confirm who you are dealing with.

And we’ll be back next week with more cybersecurity news and scam alerts.

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