I work at a news paper(in I.T) and I was telling the editor how to setup a wireless new work at home and I told him how to lock it down. I said to him if I went to any res area I bet I would pick up a lot of open hot spots.

Anyway 2 days later a reporter comes in saying the editor wants to do a story on the subject. So there I am with a photographer and a reporter driving around a middle class area.

47 hot spots found 18 fully open, one had left the default password on router. and one, I managed to get into the C:\ drive of his or hers desktop computer.

Please lock your networks down.

 

tell me about it, probably why friends get me so sort theirs out.


but it really is shocking then ANYONE can walk in to pcworld take home and set it up

yet ignore the security section, thinking they will never ever be attacked

 

i see this all the time as well!

a firewall on these pc's wouldn't go a miss either

 

they dont think .. they just buy a wireless router.. hook it up .. never read the manual ... and dont care.. and dont know...
leave it like this.. makes it easier for me to read my email and access the internet everywhere

 

 

true and it means i earn a bit fixing all the different virus and spyware problems

 

and it is also handy.. when my 8000/1024 line is 98% used for downloading nice thingies..
i can use the "default" connection from the neighboors to surf a bit faster

 

 

its wicked, next door set one up and left everything on default. Im always leeching their net connection

 

my mate was having trouble with his NTL broadband... bought a USB wireless adapter and found next door's 2mb connection open..

he's now using that instead of his 512k broadband at home