Practical VPN questions

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Is it safe to sign in to the App Store to download and install an IOS app while using a VPN away from home?

I am residing for a month in a short-stay apartment while out of town, using the apartment’s wifi. The wifi is password-secured, but the same password is shared by the other dozen or so occupants.

I am using ExpressVPN, as far as I know a highly-rated VPN service. Is it safe to type in my Apple ID password when signing in to the App Store?

I am aware that I could turn off wifi and use the phone’s cellular data connection only, but I would like to stay within the wireless plan data cap for the month.

Related comment - Don’t try to make an Amazon purchase using a new device (new M1 MacBook Pro :grinning:) while away from home and using a VPN. I tried this and was locked out of my Amazon account for security reasons :scream:. I eventually had to re-authenticate and change my Amazon password. It’s nice that Amazon is paying attention to security, but I wish I been warned about this or that I had the foresight to think of this.

It would be safe even without using the VPN. Apple is using a secure connection to handle the login process. Someone snooping on the wifi could see that you’re talking to Apple’s servers, but they couldn’t see your username or password. Using the VPN just prevents anyone on the wifi from seeing that you’re talking to Apple at all (they’ll just see you talking to the VPN).

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@ChrisUpchurch - Thanks, good to know.