Aunt_Ester
Well-Known Member
Why is it called stealing Wi-Fi when the signal trespasses on your property? =]
CDGoin said:I leave mine unlocked.. easier with all the things I have on it. I have a secondary firewall to protect from intrusion into my system.
I would just say that it would be "rude" to eat up the bandwidth by downloading porn or file sharing..
Sorry but I would never take anything that I did not pay for. That is just the way I am.
I give up....
Not to sound stupid.. oops to late for that. What does the acronym SSID stand for?
I give up....
I saw a guy in my cul-de-sac stop in the middle of the circle and hold out some wired gadget. He was looking at a laptop in his car for a few minutes, then left right as I approached him. Odd. Might have been a GPS or something, but I suspect he was looking for WiFi routers. Anyway, my paranoia got the better of me and I tightened up the security a bit. I'm involved in a fairly high-profile lawsuit right now and I know for certain the people involved have had PI's and other surveillance (I've seen some of the tapes).
I read the related penal law code for NY, and from what I gather, it is not illegal to simple use wireless. One must access a network to break the law. I'm going to ask my DA friend about this for clarification.
Your definition of using wireless vs. using a computer network doesn't seem to make sense. What other use is there for wireless except to access a computer network (the internet)?
Your definition of using wireless vs. using a computer network doesn't seem to make sense. What other use is there for wireless except to access a computer network (the internet)?
If they're broadcasting their SSID and haven't restricted access in any way, why wouldn't we read that as an invitation?
If your neighbor has a apple tree in his yard, and the branches extend over the property line to your yard, would you eat the apples on your side of the tree?
This is a fair analogy in my opinion. Our wireless networks send signals that can't be contained for the most part. If you don't secure it, you're pretty much giving permission for it to be used.
I rarely do it, but have and always will if necessary.
The internet is a public access network. Think a business' internal network, or a personal home network setup with a few computers and a linked printer. Or for fun, let's say the NSA!
No, that doesn't work because regardless of any laws defining what it may or may not mean in terms of connecting to or accessing, it amounts to theft of service. It's no different from a content standpoint than scaling the pole and connecting your cable TV line to get it free. You're receiving a paid service you haven't paid for.
Regardless of any laws? So you just decide you don't like something then declare it illegal? It doesn't work that way in real life fortunately.
You can justify it to yourself that it's not wrong... But you're stealing bandwidth you didn't pay for. They paid for a certain speed of internet and won't get that because someone else is stealing their internet.
And to those of you who say that it's not wrong or that it's fair game because it's not password protected... Is it okay to break into someone's home if the doors aren't locked? Whether it has a password or not is completely inconsequential in the discussion of whether or not it's morally wrong to do.
I just got unbored!! Another analogy: If your neighbour is talking loud and you can hear the lardy assed moo cow (Sorry, I'll pretend it's a random neighbour from here on) Is it wrong to hear them?
edit to accomodate the above post: She is talking to her shrink. She has paid for that service.
It is illegal in the majority of places.
I think the OP said he did pay for it.
Apparently it isn't where I live. I plan on clarifying for academic purposes, but let's just say I'm pretty familiar with the NYS penal law, and according to what I read, they refer to networks specifically.
It is illegal in the vast majority of places.
So when you connect to your neighbor's wi-fi you get a popup that says "take me I'm free", or "you have my permission to use this network"?
There is a link back in post #22.
So when you connect to your neighbor's wi-fi you get a popup that says "take me I'm free", or "you have my permission to use this network"?
There is a link back in post #22.
Did you read the link?
I didn't go through all 50 states, but the ones I did look at use language very similar to what Airborneguy describes for New York. In other words: it's not as obvious as you'd like it to be.
Implicit permission is a common question in the law. The issue comes down to reasonable interpretations of intent. As I keep saying, among everyone I know an open wifi router is explicitly intended as an invitation for the public to hop on.
As a side note, do you really need to drench your responses in sarcasm? This is just a friendly conversation here.
Regardless of any laws, I find it unacceptable to take something that isn't yours. A neighbor's Internet service isn't yours. To me it's a matter of principle.
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