SO How Bad is it REALLY to Pirate a Wireless Signal??

[ACMESkydiver 0]

I'm at my friend's house watching her babies whilest she and hubby go out to a business meeting for a few hours.

Their internet signal sucks ass. Their computer is screwy...I brought my own laptop and A-HA! There is an unsecure signal somewhere nearby...

I'm trying to get my damn taxes done and I don't want to end up sitting on my ass for 3 freaking hours while the babies sleep, they're gone, and I have a TON of work to do...

So really...how bad is it? Is it horribly dangerous? Will my passwords be stolen? Am I a naughty sneaky thief? And any way I could get CAUGHT?!

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[Unstable 9]

I think DSE Might agree that it's okay as long as you pirate music....

=========Shaun ==========

[normiss 898]

the risk over an unsecured wirless network is huge - especially given that you're doing your taxes...ALL of your most valued personal information is floating around the air waves available for the taking...

now the odds of someone actually capturing that data....whole 'nother story.

[ACMESkydiver 0]

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I think DSE Might agree that it's okay as long as you pirate music....

[shaking bootie to sound clip from 'Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou']...bow chick bow chick bow bow bow...bow chick bow chick bow

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[ACMESkydiver 0]

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the risk over an unsecured wirless network is huge - especially given that you're doing your taxes...ALL of your most valued personal information is floating around the air waves available for the taking...

now the odds of someone actually capturing that data....whole 'nother story.

Oh, no worries then!

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[PLFXpert 0]

Pirates are SO in right now.

No worries; you're totally cool.

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[ACMESkydiver 0]

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Pirates are SO in right now.

No worries; you're totally cool.

ARRRGH!!!

I have to quit wasting time whilest I have a part of a shitty signal! I have to log in 96 orders worth of $...

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[ExAFO 0]

The answer to your questions depends on one factor: How ugly are the babies you are watching?

Illinois needs a CCW Law. NOW.

[Loonix 0]

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the risk over an unsecured wirless network is huge - especially given that you're doing your taxes...ALL of your most valued personal information is floating around the air waves available for the taking...

is that so even if you're using an SSL connection to the server? Is it still available on the local wireless then?

[misaltas 0]

My neighbor's floodlight is bright enough for me to read by in my bedroom at night. He pays the electric bill which generates the light and I use the light because it's there. If he wanted, he could redirect the light or turn it off.

Securing a wireless network is so easy; usually one click away. Yet when I scan for wireless networks on my street all but one are wide open.

That said, I do agree with normiss that there's surely a risk. All you need is one geek nearby to ruin your life. That's the reason why you shouldn't tap in, not because you think you're stealing something.

Ohne Liebe sind wir nichts

[bigway 4]

if you did that to me and i was over my limit it would cost me 0.15 cents per MB. i would be pissed off if you ripped me off and made my bill high.

How do you know if they are on their limit or not? You ma be charging hundreds of dollars to them for all you know, you have no idea of their contract.

it is bad. It is theft and criminal.

.Karnage Krew Gear Store
.

[misaltas 0]

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it is bad. It is theft and criminal.

Sorry, It's neither. FCC says that broadcasters are responsible for governing what they put out, not receivers.

Ohne Liebe sind wir nichts

[bigway 4]

wow, did not know that. Makes me wonder if it is USA thing or australian as well.

Either way it is bad Karma. Kind of like taking advantage of people who do not know how to set it up secure.

I am also guilty of using someones wireless when out and about with my pda.

.Karnage Krew Gear Store
.

[Mikhail 0]

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the risk over an unsecured wirless network is huge - especially given that you're doing your taxes...ALL of your most valued personal information is floating around the air waves available for the taking...

is that so even if you're using an SSL connection to the server? Is it still available on the local wireless then?

Absolutely not. SSL encrypts the link between your browser and the web server software.

P.S. SSH tunnels rule.

[sartre 0]

My wireless is secured, but I have unlimited. So what would be wrong with one of my neighbors using it? Other than me leaving myself open on an unsecured network....

[misaltas 0]

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Either way it is bad Karma

In fairness to your point, I suppose the ethics of it are debatable, since one could grind the other guy's speed down to a trickle downloading Rambo 4.

But please people, it's so easy to secure it. Do it. Especially if you're paying for access by data size, or in say a condo complex or apartment building where there could be so many wireless cards/devices in range.

Ohne Liebe sind wir nichts

[ryoder 1,590]

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My wireless is secured, but I have unlimited. So what would be wrong with one of my neighbors using it?

Taking the hit because your neighbor used your connection to:
a) Hack into someone else computer.
b) Download copyrighted files.
c) Download kiddy porn.
d) Get infected by a virus that used his computer to launch DOS attacks.

Surprisingly, only about 15-20% of my neighbors leave their AP's open.

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[sartre 0]

Oohhhh, good to know.

[Shell666 0]

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My wireless is secured, but I have unlimited. So what would be wrong with one of my neighbors using it?

Taking the hit because your neighbor used your connection to:
a) Hack into someone else computer.
b) Download copyrighted files.
c) Download kiddy porn.
d) Get infected by a virus that used his computer to launch DOS attacks.

Surprisingly, only about 15-20% of my neighbors leave their AP's open.

There are 8 in my neighbourhood right now, including mine (single family dwellings). All are secure.

'Shell

[kelpdiver 2]

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Surprisingly, only about 15-20% of my neighbors leave their AP's open.

A lot of the routers being shipped out by the phone company dsl are secured by default now.

I see no moral issue with 'borrowing' a little bandwidth to do a little work, but I think using it to do large binary downloads is being a bad guest.

There is a small security concern, but not a huge one. I wouldn't have any shared services on that laptop, however.

[DSE 5]

Its' the same in Australia. Call up the ABC/Auntie...they'll tell you the same thing.

Back in "tha day" we had war-chalking, or a way to mark where there was wireless that could be stolen, and then the FCC said "If you own a wireless modem, it's up to you to deal with the bandwidth usage."

Cool.
Note to everyone; I can't begin to count the number of times I've been on a public network and been able to browse other computers. Secure your laptops, folks...

[ACMESkydiver 0]

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My wireless is secured, but I have unlimited. So what would be wrong with one of my neighbors using it? Other than me leaving myself open on an unsecured network....

It can slow you down, as someone else mentioned.

Not that it mattered for me this time anyhoo. The signal was too weak for me to maintain a connection anyway.

When I'm 'borrowing' a signal, it's usually to place an order or check on an existing order. I'm going through an encrypted secure website, and I'm literally on and off again in about 5 minutes.

It's easier than messing with someone's network that they have already secured in their home (like my friend's...they had a secure wireless network, but they couldn't remember the key for me to tie into it...and even using their own computer, it just sucked).

We have a secure and a non-secure network in our house. I don't really care about neighbors scamming the non-secure network if they wanted to. It's a default that we never use.

On second thought...what R posted above is making me think maybe that's not such a good idea. Joe sets up our networking, I'll have to ask him.

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[streaker 0]

Streaker

Have a yippee ki ya day!

[ACMESkydiver 0]

Gosh I guess I'll have to jump on that bandwagon!

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[Thanatos340 1]

I would not do my taxes over an unsecured wireless connection but I think you have about the same odds of winning the lottery and getting struck by Lightening on the same day as you do as you of someone happening to be in your neighborhood, Sniffing your packets at that moment and extracting personal info.

When I am taveling for work and need to check my email between visits to client sites, I have been known to pull into the parking lot of randon hotels and do just that on thier unsecured wireless signals.