What would you do if you found out that someone was using your wireless home network?

Question

How should the law handle such abuse, and how should violators be punished?

Answer 1

It's not at all uncommon, and not at all illegal, and it's not that big a deal, since few users have any other motive for doing so than to piggy-back on your wireless access point for internet access, rather than to hack or probe your system.

If you are playing a radio loud enough for people walking past your window to hear it, it's exactly the same case. You can't punish them for listening to your music.

When setting up a wireless access point, you'll usually have three options: leave it open to the world; secure it with WEP (encrypted, requires a logon); or secure it with WAP (requires log-on, much more secure, the highest level of protection on the router, but not supported by some other routers--a problem).

Secured with WEP, you'll usually avoid the problem with eaves-droppers, though it is not air-tight. Ironically, where I mentioned above that few of the "listeners" have malicious intent and usually haven't mastered the sophisticated techniques required to hack or damage you system, it should be known that for those who do have the sophistication (real hackers), WEP is not such an obstacle, it's almost porous.

It's a judgment call as to whether you want your neighbors to piggy-back on you, though we all know that security is the key to maintaining privacy.

Answer 2

If you don't use WEP, WPA, or any other form of security on your wireless network, then you have no room to complain.

It's like wearing a sign on your back saying "Kick Me".

Next time read the user manual.

Answer 3

Secure it with a password at least 6 characters including upper and lower case plus at least 1 number.

Answer 4

MAC filter that persons address.

Answer 5

WHEN U HAVE DONE UR WORK FINISH U JUST CLOSED UR WIRELESS SWITCH OR ROUTER

Answer 6

its not illegal, if you don't want anyone using it, just click on the little "make it secure" button.