Originally Posted by
gerilege
.. Default search bar in Safari seemed like re-directed..
Depending on your browser settings, this should not be possible. Just go to the website of your search engine and check the connection settings.
When you log on, your phone will usually allow the first connection to be hijacked for the login process. The credentials in that case should indicate that they are compromised and if done properly, the URL should look different.
Originally Posted by
airoli
..I always use a VPN when connecting to any public wifi.
I do that too but it really does eat into speed. And for https connections, it adds next to no security.