What is the danger of having or using an open wifi connection?
- Thursday, July 9, 2009, 15:31
- WiFi News
- 5 comments
I know it’s supposedly a huge security risk, but what exactly is the risk? Can someone with hacker skills watch what websites you go to or see the files on your computer? I want to give away my wifi because I believe in sharing but I’m concerned about security.
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5 Comments on “What is the danger of having or using an open wifi connection?”
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What can happen is that just about anyone can use your internet connection.
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9 times out of 10 (obligatory # showing my guess), this is not a problem. A lot of people with laptops just enjoy finding ‘free internet’ to use for a quick e-mail check (or, if they’re your neighbor and are picking up your signal, they can cut down on monthly bills
Pretty much anyone who knows about networking and finds that you have an open wifi could potentially exploit you (most common would be performing illegal ‘computer crime’ from your IP address)–in which case you could be held liable or something (I don’t know much about laws)
As for your security, I’ve never looked in to stealing people’s files (every computer I’ve ever owned has just been littered with stupid family photos and poorly constructed English essays.. so I imagine this would be a boring hobby
) so, i’m not sure how open wi-fi might affect this.
Yes someone can monitor any activities you do online, or that your computer does automatically. Not only that, if you don’t PW your router they can access that and even block you from using it.
Sharing freely should also be reconsidered.
Most people are fairly honest. Understand though that there are those who are just plain bad and with an open wifi connection these people can use YOUR connection to engauge in illegal activity. This means when it is investigated it will track right back to you and without anyway to record who was using your equipment you are sunk.
It is never a bad idea to be a little paranoid… as long as you are paranoid about your paranoia consuming you
Hi,
There is no need to give away your wifi you just need to add a layer of security to the system so the data is encrypted.
This site will tell you how to do so :-
http://compnetworking.about.com/od/wirelesssecurity/tp/wifisecurity.htm
Arnak