Folks in California who have set up their own home wireless networks may soon have a little more weaponry in their arsenal to keep piggybackers from hacking into their networks.
The California State Assembly has passed legislation requiring wireless manufacturers to place a warning label on laptops or other equipment such as routers that would provide instructions on how to protect personal files. The label could appear as:
• A warning sticker placed on the ports of a wireless router.
• A warning that appears when installing a wireless device.
• An alert that requires consumers to take action before the device is used.
• Or other, unspecified protections on the wireless connection.
Of course, it really is up to the individual to do all he or she can to secure their own wireless network, but at the very least a little extra nudge to take these steps is worth something.
1. Who cares -- I still don't see whay anyone would care if someone piggybacks. When WiMAX is deployed everyone would have access to the signal, so this is similar to WiMAX provided by your neighbors. And if you fear for your computers security go ahead and encrpyt your signal. I would say the US Mail is less secure and easier to break into than someone's WiFi communication. How many people can open a mailbox, versus how many people can sniff and decode a WiFi signal. I don't encrypt and don't care if someone is using my bandwidth right this very second.
Posted at 3:41PM on Aug 30th 2006 by John Pasmore