Internet Banking Safe?

[Deacx]

I'm not sure if this is the right thread to post this but, how safe is it to use an Internet cafe/shop in Thailand in general?

Should be over in a couple of weeks and spending a few months there as well as Cambodia & Malaysia.

I will have to do my banking online because my funds are floating about all over the place due to the Icelandic bank crisis. I have read on some forums NEVER use these shops because of keyloggers and wifi bandits. Can anyone give me a suggestion how to find some secure PCs.

I will be travelling all over TL but be in BKK area for first few weeks. Any help appreciated!

[NHJ]

if your banks are smart they don't provide only a username and a password but also a digital device used to sign your login from numbers read on the login page, then it's safe to do, if not it's unsafe.

[Gary A]

I would never use an Internet cafe for banking or credit card transactions. Most of the shop owners have no idea what key loggers even are. Some time back there was a young savvy farang who went from shop to shop installing key loggers. After a few rounds he had plenty of passwords to get into people's accounts. By a stroke of luck one shop owner was aware of key loggers and checked his machines often. He was somehow able to catch the kid and the police arrested the young wannabe hacker. As far as I know, the police let him go because they could not determine if the wannabe thief had actually stolen anything.

[nikster]

I'm not sure if this is the right thread to post this but, how safe is it to use an Internet cafe/shop in Thailand in general?

Should be over in a couple of weeks and spending a few months there as well as Cambodia & Malaysia.

I will have to do my banking online because my funds are floating about all over the place due to the Icelandic bank crisis. I have read on some forums NEVER use these shops because of keyloggers and wifi bandits. Can anyone give me a suggestion how to find some secure PCs.

I will be travelling all over TL but be in BKK area for first few weeks. Any help appreciated!

No, it's not safe.

Safest / cheap option would be to get yourself an Eee PC with Linux (!) and use that in internet cafes and so on. A Mac would do too but it's going to be more expensive and bigger/heavier.

Don't use Windows as connecting your Windows PC to a network in an internet shop is unsafe by default. You can make Windows safe, but it takes knowledge, effort, and money (AV program), easier to just use Linux/Mac.

[LivinLOS]

Buy yourself a netbook or cheap laptop for this purpose..

[Digitalbanana]

and money (AV program)

Eh?

[Deacx]

Thanks for replies so far. Due to the icelandic bank fiasco, i could well be up <deleted> creek if i can't control where my compensation payout the Uk Gov via FSCS promised. I'm still a UK res, (for now) so can keep my ISA tax free wapper, but will have a few probs opening up a new account from Thailand no doubt..

At the moment, a laptop or sub PC is not an option due to the backpacking style (tight traveller) style of my trip. I won't be stopping in the grandest hotels so another piece of metal to lug around would be potential thief fodder. And the extra worry of wondering where I hid it on the morning after :-) Also I will be visiting Cambodia, Nam & Malaysia so say no more.

If I found a buddy with a PC at home do you think there would be any issues with security if they have basic Antivirus/firewall ?