<snip> On 04/25/2011 10:46 PM, Steven Morrey wrote: > Hello everyone, > > Unless you've been living under a rock for the last few days you've > probably heard about this. > http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=157&sid=15279689 > > In a nutshell, a neighbor used this guys wifi connection to download > illegal material. > ICE (Why ICE and not the FBI I have no idea), contacted his ISP and > found out where he lived. > They then brought in the swat team and knocked him around for quite > awhile while then confiscated all of his internet connected devices > when he didn't relent. > > It wasn't until they decided that he wasn't the culprit, that they did > a little due diligence on the username (looking at other places it had > been used), that they finally exercised a modicum of common sense and > let the guy go. > > The media spin on this? Secure your wifi. > > Secure your wifi? Are you serious? Ok lets think about this for a > minute, none of the encryption standards currently used by > commercially available home routers are really designed as an > authentication medium. > They are there simply to encrypt the connection and slow down anyone > who might be eavesdropping on the conversation. >
So take this from another perspective. Let's say I use MAC spoofing to gain access to Comcast for Internet access. Comcast finds out and I get charged with theft of service. So why is this not also theft of service in this case for the poor man? The attacker should be responsible not just for the mischief they get up to on the Internet, but they should also have some punishment for breaking into this guy's network and mucking around with his account and his reputation. As far as I know, it's still considered breaking and entering if someone gets into your premises through an unlocked door. I mean really here people. Breaking into this guy's network and using that access to break the law, this shouldn't be viewed any differently than if the guy physically broke into the house and stole a bunch of stuff. The headline of the article itself is ridiculous. Privacy dangers? Really? The so-called security measures are even funnier. Disable SSID broadcast? Wow that does a lot to a guy with a packet sniffer. This is what we get though when we allow technical idiots to enact and enforce laws that are ludicrous at best. /* PLUG: http://plug.org, #utah on irc.freenode.net Unsubscribe: http://plug.org/mailman/options/plug Don't fear the penguin. */
