Accessing open wifi illegal

Or it could be a hacker, a spammer, a child pornographer, a music pirate or even a terrorist. Internet providers log activities originating from your home Internet connection. That means everything that your wireless network is used for — for legal or illegal purposes — can be traced back to you. Case in point: in , The Washington Post reported that when detectives raided an Arlington, Virginia apartment looking for a pedophile peddling pornography online, they found an elderly woman who had nothing to do with the crime.

Her wireless router was unsecured — wide open for someone else to use. Since then, there have been many U. The court ruled that Internet users must password protect their wifi or face a fine if a third party uses it to illegally download music, movies or other copyrighted media.

In , terrorists affiliated with the Indian Mujahideen group hacked into a home wireless connection of a U. They used it to send out an email warning of their attacks in several cities which killed 46 people and wounded Last year, the same group used another unsecured wifi connection belonging to an Indian disc jockey in Mumbai to send terror emails claiming responsibility for a blast in the city of Varanasi.

As a result, Indian police have begun a crackdown against those who use unsecured wifi. In some cities, violators will be fined and even face prison time for failing to secure their wireless networks. Tags: Hacking Threats wifi hotspots. They turn it up whenever they feel like it and it makes living conditions in my home a living hell. Is there any law against this?

Tags: Hacking Threats wifi hotspots. They turn it up whenever they feel like it and it makes living conditions in my home a living hell. Is there any law against this? WiFi mooching is a two-way […]. Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Is Public WiFi Safe in ? Thought Leadership. What Is a VPN? Is Public WiFi Safe? Rethinking the Security of Health and Fitness Apps. Craigslist Scams. Are we going to find ourselves at a point where we need to do the same for the digital world as well? On a semi-tangent; is his being chased from point to point really enough evidence to confiscate the laptop?

Labels: ethics , hotspot , Internet , legal , Libraries , wi-fi. I think this seems a little ridiculous. If a business wants to block after hours access to the wi-fi, simply turn it off just like you would lock the door. The follow up reports that have been published thanks to Liz Burns for passing them along!! The laptop is still confiscated although no charges have been brought onto Tanner.

For some reason he has to wait for the library director to come back before he can get it. This is all pretty scary in its implications, as you correctly state most of our devices default to simply seeking out a wifi network that is close. A friend of mine recently asked me to help her with her wireless network and when I got to her house, I quickly realized that she wasn't using her network.

She'd accidentally been using her neighbors'. It seems like the police in this town are overstepping their authority. It's probably a good idea for ALA to issue a statement on this It's disappointing that the library itself is not standing up for their patron. The "first available network" is an issue. I can usually view 5 networks at any one time, and only two are secured.