Stealing Your Neighbor's WIFI Signal is Still Illegal
Tuesday, February 08, 2011
A recent poll by Wakefield Research and the Wi-Fi Alliance reveals that nearly one third of respondents admit to piggybacking on a neighbors unsecured WI-FI connection.
The percentage is about double the number that admitted to stealing WI-FI access in a previous poll in 2008.
Unsecured WI-FI connections pose a security threat to both the owner of the connection and to those who might "borrow" it from time to time.
Either way, an unsecured connection leaves sensitive data such as login passwords and credit card details vulnerable to harvesting by software such as Firesheep.
And yes, stealing your neighbors WI-FI signal is still illegal.
"Most consumers know that leaving their Wi-Fi network open is not a good thing, but the reality is that many have not taken the steps to protect themselves. Consumers can usually activate Wi-Fi security protections in a few simple steps, but much like the seatbelts in your car, it won't protect you unless you use it," said Kelly Davis-Felner of the Wi-Fi Alliance.
Owners of unsecured WI-FI connections also run the risk of having any illegal online activity potentially traced back to their ISP connection.
The Wi-Fi Alliance, a non-profit industry association, recommends WI-FI owners take a few easy steps to secure their connection:
- Set home Wi-Fi networks for WPA2 security
- Look for Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ products
- Look for devices with Wi-Fi Protected Setup
- Create strong passwords
- Be smart about hotspot use
- Turn off automatic connecting
More details on how to accomplish these security precautions can be found here:
Source: http://www.wi-fi.org/news_articles.php?f=media_news&news_id=1039
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