Washington Post Spreads Open WiFi FUD
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Techdirt pointed me to a ridiculous story written by Jamie Stockwell, Washington Post Staff Writer. She says WiFi Turns Internet Into Hideout for Criminals .
This is just plain silly. Simply because criminals might use an open WiFi network doesn’t mean they’re uncatchable. More often than not they leave other clues behind leading a trail right back to them. Techdirt tracks several examples of this.
In response to a quote from the Stockwell’s article, “Open wireless signals are akin to leaving your front door wide open all day — and returning home to find that someone has stolen your belongings and left a mess that needs cleaning,” Techdirt wisely points out:
That’s simply not true. Nothing gets “stolen,” and it’s unlikely they leave any kind of mess. If you set up your network correctly, your own use can be perfectly protected while others use your broadband. Basically, it sounds like this article was pushed by law enforcement officials who don’t like the fact that open WiFi makes it a bit harder for them to track down criminals.
What do you think?
[tags]WiFi, FUD, criminal investigations, spam, security[/tags]
2 Comments
Cell Phone Companies On Mission To Kill WiFi « usrbingeek’s musings
March 5th, 2007
at 12:29am
[...] We can’t allow the cell phone companies to kill off open WiFi through FUD or lobbying efforts. The only threat Wi-Fi poses is to the cell phone companies. Poor them! We have all been nickel and dimed by every cell phone company too long anyway. [...]
steve
June 1st, 2007
at 6:40pm
I have long suspected that the fuss about open wifi networks is a plot by the ISPs to force everybody to get their own, expensive, cable/dsl connection. Just about every apartment I visit has several wifi networks available from nearby apartments, and they are all encrypted. No sharing possible, and really, the threat is far lower than that of downloading malware off the internet. And if an unencrypted network is such a big deal, how come cafes with wifi thrive so? I never use encryption on my home wifi networks, and I suggest no one else bother either.