Computer Act!ve - UK (2022-05-25)

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WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN...

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technical terms? Email noproblem@

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??

Click 'Update now' to download 21H1, then follow the instructions to install

Public Wi-Fi hotspots?

• How do I stop double-
  spacing in WordPad?


• Should I click the
  Unsubscribe button?


• What’s causing my black
  screen? ...And many more

Q

I’ve tried many times to update

my HP Intel Core i5 Windows 10

computer from 21H1 to 21H2,

but it has never offered to do so. How do I

compel it to update, or have I missed the

boat? Thanks for any advice you can give.

Andrew West

A

Microsoft tightly manages the

rollout of major Windows

updates, so not everyone gets

them at the same time. It also applies

‘compatibility holds’ to some machines

that it knows or suspects will have

problems running a particular update.

However, 21H2 – also known as the

November 2021 Update – is now

designated by Microsoft as ready for

‘broad deployment’, meaning the

company isn’t now actively preventing

any machines from receiving it.

So, we can’t say why it’s not arrived

automatically. Fortunately, it’s easy

enough to apply the update manually

using Microsoft’s free Update Assistant

tool. Visit the Microsoft page at http://www.

snipca.com/41755 and click the ‘Update

now’ button to download it (see

screenshot^1 ).

Now just run the tool by double-

clicking the downloaded file and then

follow Update Assistant’s prompts^2.

Where’s my 21H2?

Q

In this box in Issue 630 you

explained to Nick Duffy why

public Wi-Fi hotspots are less

safe than home Wi-Fi. I wonder if any

public Wi-Fi hotspots can be trusted?

I’m a BT customer and I sometimes

connect to one of the company’s Wi-Fi

hotspots in the city centre where I live.

I do this to check email and read news

online, while I have a coffee. Is there a

difference between a public Wi-Fi

hotspot from a big company like BT

and the others you talked about, such

as one provided by a café? I have to log

in with my BT account details. Only I

know these, so is this kind of hotspot

safer?

George Mann

A

There isn’t really any

difference: a public hotspot

from BT, or any other big-

name provider, is still a public hotspot.

However, in some respects, connecting

to the Wi-Fi hotspot of a ‘trusted’ brand

could actually present more risk, not

less. We know that’s unexpected, so

we’d better explain.

Again, it boils down to trust and

control – but from a slightly different

perspective. Connect to a big-name

public hotspot and you can have some

confidence that your personal data is

handled responsibly. In other words, you

can trust BT hotspots to be well-

managed, just as you trust the company

with your home internet connection.

But the trouble is this: can you be sure

that a public hotspot purporting to be

from ‘BT’ is actually controlled by BT? It’s

easy to set up a network with a name

that’s the same as a real BT public

hotspot. You could do it yourself in

seconds with a smartphone’s personal

hotspot. Suddenly, your phone is the

‘BT’ public hotspot. It’s not a whole lot

more difficult to create a fake login

website that looks just like one from BT,

or any other company.

We’re not suggesting that every

location is awash with scammers

broadcasting spoofed networks and

fake login pages, but the possibility is

there – so it’s just another reason to be

wary of public Wi-Fi hotspots.

Public Wi-Fi

hotspots

offered by big

names such

as BT are

trustworthy –

but beware of

hotspots faked

by scammers

to look like they

are provided

by legitimate

companies

Issue 632 • 25 May – 7 June 2022

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