blogs.computerworld.com — There are two reasons why it should not be illegal, or considered unethical, to use someone else's Wi-Fi network: 1) By using a Wi-Fi network you're -- by definition -- asking for, and receiving, permission from the owner; and 2) Your computer can't be on their Wi-Fi network unless their network is in your computer.
Jun 19, 2008 View in Crawl 4
zeeklancerJun 20, 2008
Ok here is the deal... I see alot of people saying stuff like: 1) Just because I let you in my house does not mean you can eat my food. (I let you on the wifi network, but it does not mean you can use my internet connection) 2) I left my car open and keys in it, this does not mean you can drive off with my car. (Just because it is open does not mean you can use it) 3) Just because the hardware said ok, use me does not mean the user granted permission to use the network. BREAK!!!Those are all just plane wrong. Nobody here is looking at the full scope of what is going on. This goes to pro legal , and pro illegal. Here is the deal. When you go to the store and buy a wifi router in most cases you you are doing the following. You are going to the store to buy a sign, for your hose car or what ever, That said. "This is open, and free to use". Yes this ay sound silly, because I am sure that alot of users don't intend on doing this, but they are. But the joke is on the user. It would be silly for me to hold up a sign in public with out me first knowing what it said? The said truth of it is that the buyers of wifi devices did not read their documentation and did not read the sign they posted up when they plugged the wifi router / device in. It is the wifi device owners fault. It happens all the time and it is not confined to just wifi / routers. Every day millions of people make mistakes everyday because they did not read and take the time to comprehend what they were doing before doing it. Tek mubo jump that backs up info provided above. 1) Most wifi routers will have printouts telling you the default configuration of the wifi router, which is most often open. 2) Wifi routers that are open broadcast a signal with a message ("hold up a sign") saying hey I am open and free to use. And after you are connected to the wifi network a request is made for internet access. The wifi router holds up another sing saying here is the info have fun by responding to a dhcp request. So it comes down to this. If you can't draw a diagram of the entire situation that properly depicts both the human, hardware and software interactions then you should probably unplug your wifi router and turn off your computer and head to a library and learn a thing a two about the equipment you are using. One last analogy for your. If you go to home depo and buy a circular saw and improperly use it and cut your arm off whose fault is it? Most likely the operators. The same goes with wifi router owners. If you don't know how to use it and set it up or fail to set it up the way you want it to work then it is your fault. If you don't want people using your wifi, then learn how to use your wifi router correctly to get it to work the way you want it to. (NO, you cant put up a sign saying come in to my house and eat my food and shoot the first person that actually does what the sign said). -Zeek
innisskillinJun 20, 2008
If you left your door unlocked your insurance company won't see it as theft.
gavin422Jun 20, 2008
It's important to note, though, that anyone connecting to someone else's unsecured wireless *is* depriving them of resources. Bandwidth is limited. Some plans even charge by bandwidth. To say that you're not doing any harm whatsoever is disingenuous.
shugninx21Jun 20, 2008
"how are you supposed to tell the difference, ask them and see if they will let you have some."Your version of "asking" the WiFi for access is akin to "asking" the bottles or fridge if you can have one, as apposed to the actual owner of the bottles or WiFi. You can tell the difference in the labels as free ones will be named as free or from the establishment with the sign that says Free WiFi.Even Better, you should have common sense and decency, both of which should tell you that you didn't pay for that WiFi and that you are accessing a WiFi in a place not known for handing out free WiFi and thus should not help oneself to the WiFi without expressed printed or verbal consent from the owner or it's stealing.Now I don't give a s**t if you steal WiFi, but quit acting like you have some kind of right to it.
padraic2112Jun 20, 2008
> You know that it's perfectly legal to get shot if you > enter someone else's property > even if the front door is open?Er. No. It's not. I'm not sure where you live, but at least in California (state law with which I'm somewhat reasonably familiar) you cannot summarily execute someone for walking through your open door... you have to have what a jury would believe to be reasonable expectation that the person was intending to do you harm.
justjoehereJun 22, 2008
The fallacy in your argument is that the heat you are receiving does not impact the heat I receive or generate. It does not require an act on your part to receive nor use. A wireless connection is not analogous to your heater argument. Just because the hardware has pre-programmed hand-shaking routines that make it permissible to connect, does not mean you should allow your computer to connect to it; nor does a connection, through ignorance or theft, bequeath permission to use the bandwidth. Stealing is stealing. Just because something is unsecured does not mean anyone has the right to use it without permission. It is really that cut and dry. Any attempts to rationalize it is just an attempt at rationalizing stealing.
justjoehereJun 22, 2008
Stealing is stealing. Just because something is unsecured does not mean anyone has the right to use it without permission. It is really that cut and dry. Any attempts to rationalize it is just an attempt at rationalizing stealing. Just because I don't lock my door doesn't mean I am granting, by proxy or any other means, permission for you to take something of mine. Otherwise, I could just take the gas in your car if it doesn't have a locked gas cap and is parked outside of a locked garage.
phibitJun 26, 2008
So you agree then that your opinion isn't intelligent?
mastermwlJul 5, 2008
Our ISP encourages us to share WiFi. Go figure.
squirlyblackAug 1, 2008
Like many of the other posts, i must concure, why should you blame a person for using something provided by the negligence of others. If they are not securing their connections, they are practically inviting people over, but hey, i guess going on your router's page (192.168.x.1) is a hard thing to do, let alone the fact you have to put in WPA security enabled. <a class="user" href="https://cisco.hosted.jivesoftware.com/index.jspa?ciscoHome=true?utm_source=blog+commenting&utm_medium=media&utm_content=Google&utm_campaign=International">https://cisco.hosted.jivesoftware.com/index.jspa?c ...</a>
manogamezSep 27, 2008
Sorry dude. I guess some people need [sarcasm] tags.