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Public Wi-Fi

Free Wi-Fi is available to the public 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Our Wi-Fi is not password protected, so please proceed with caution. For tips about using public Wi-fi Networks, please read on below.

Please see our Wi-Fi names and locations below.

Bristol Public

Patrons can access this Wi-Fi throughout the entire building and in the back yard.
No Password Necessary.

Library_Parkinglot

Patrons can access this Wi-Fi in the parking lot behind the library and in parking spots on Thames Street directly in front of the lot.
No Password Necessary, but you must open a browser and accept the terms and conditions.

NTERNET USE POLICYDownload

How To Safely Use our Public Wi-Fi Networks

When you’re at home, you can take steps to keep your home wireless network secure — like using a strong router password, limiting what devices can get onto your network, and turning on encryption, which scrambles the information you send over the internet into a code that can’t be read by others. But when you’re using the library Wi-Fi, other users on the network can see what you see and send if they hijack your session. But there are steps you can take to protect your information, even when using our public network.

Ways To Encrypt Your Information

Connect to websites securely. If you see https in the web address, you have a secure connection to the website. But using https does not mean a website is legit. Scammers know how to encrypt sites, too. They know that people assume https means a website is safe — so they’ve started adding it to their websites, as well. So your data is encrypted on its way to the site, but it won’t be safe from scammers operating that site.

Consider using a VPN app. Some virtual private networks, known as VPNs, offer encryption. There are many VPNs out there, make sure to research before you choose one.

Protect Your Information When You Use Public Wi-Fi

Here are some other ways you can protect your information when you’re using our public Wi-Fi:

  • Don’t access your personal or financial information.
  • Log in or send personal information only to websites you know are fully encrypted with https.
  • Don’t stay permanently signed in to accounts.
  • Don’t use the same password on different websites.
  • Pay attention to warnings from your browser.
  • Keep your browser and security software up to date.
  • Install browser add-ons or plug-ins that can help, such as Force-TLS and HTTPS-Everywhere.