I reckon my neighbours have got 10MB broadband

[tinman0]

BlairOut, I think what you are doing is illegal and could be covered by theft of electricity.

Theft of Electricity is one of the charges that phreakers used to get charged with many years ago, plus the people who found open 0800s that gave them a dial tone to redial out again.

[Polarbert]

So how could someone gain access to the stuff on my computer through my wifi connection? Is it possible for them to look at all my files?

[CommanderJameson]

Polarbert said:

So how could someone gain access to the stuff on my computer through my wifi connection? Is it possible for them to look at all my files?

Short version: Yes.

Long version: look at the network adapter properties for your internet connection, and make sure that everything is unticked except TCP/IP.

That means no Client For Microsoft Networks and so on and so forth.

[Flat in Fifth]

So you find an unsecured wifi connection. Unless you only have one or two neighbours how the hell do you find out who it is? Door to door, no ta had enough of that in my time. (Remembers Park Hill flats Sheffield : shudders: )

Secondly I have heard of a case where someone was getting interference from a neighbouring unsecured network. His PC kept logging on to the connection and despite phaffing about with frequencies etc it kept being a real pain in the rear.

So one night he logged on using name=admin password=password and :ahem: "secured" the network for whoever it was. No problem since apparently. Probably the wifi box went back to the manufacturer, don't work this blinding thing etc etc.

Not me btw but wonder if I would have been tempted.

[Polarbert]

When I got this thing, I thought about renaming it to my name, or the family name, but then thought again!


There is an unsecured Netgear wifi somewhere around me, I've tried accessing it to make it secured, but they have got a password on the settings page.

[tonto]

To secure your WiFi network, you need to;

1) Password Protect your Router
2) Disable Wireless access to your Router management ports (optional)
3) Enable encryption/security (WEP/WPA)
4) Disable SSID broadcast
5) Enable MAC address filtering
6) Enable the Router firewall (on by default anyway)

Your network is then secure.

To do the above, either read the manual, (its not that difficult honest!) or get an expert to do it. Not doing the above means that its possible for hackers to;
(a) Use your network to access the internet
(b) Attempt to hack into your PC(s)
(c) Monitor Your usage of the Internet (and potentially capture user ids and passwords you use to logon to Internet sites)

[mindgam3]

Its not quite the same as an open door to someones house

The signal is being broadcast outside of the owners private area so in some ways it could be deemed public.

If you're stupid enough to not secure your network then you get all you deserve.

There's no way of your neighbours catching you if you recieve the signal in the confines of your own home. The guy on that link only got caught because he was behaving suspiciously

An analogy could be that instead of the burglar coming into your unlocked home for goods.... you are taking the goods to the burglars private property where he can quite happily steal it without moving from his seat :P

[tinman0]

mindgam3 said:

The signal is being broadcast outside of the owners private area so in some ways it could be deemed public. If you're stupid enough to not secure your network then you get all you deserve.

bbc news said:

In Straszkiewcz's case, he was prosecuted under the Communications Act and found guilty of dishonestly obtaining an electronic communications service.

Ok, the answer to this problem really is in the article on the BBC website. There is a specific offence (apparently) for using a communication service without permission.

Its really as black and white as that people. The owner does not have to lock down their network, the onus is on the unauthorised user not to connect to the network in the first place.