Wireless connectivity - It's becoming a way of life these
days. Known as WiFi, it brings endless possibilities,
Good & Bad. I'm sure an eyebrow or two moved on that
sentence. Bad?
Good: Flexibility, Productivity, Extending into areas
where wires will not go.
Bad: Speed issues, can be complex, security, range,
compatibility.
If
you own a iphone, laptop or similar device you probably
connect to a network using WiFi. So what's the big
deal you ask? This month we'll talk a little about
WiFi security.
War
Driving - It's a method that people use to "find" wireless
connections that are not secured. A quick download and
a GPS hookup would allow us to map out an entire city with
every open/non-secured wireless connection available.
iphones have an option that tells you every time there is an
available connection, other devices will allow you to scan
for available connections. Again, big deal right?
Wrong.
When a device connects to a typical network, that device
will be able to talk to everything connected to that
network, just like it's plugged in with a wire. This
brings possibilities of your other devices such as your home
computer or your office computer to be looked at. Not only
should you be concerned about this, but this also allows
them to "use" your Internet connection. Why should you
care? Here are a few thoughts to scare the whit's out
of you quickly.
a.
Spammers - love finding open networks so they can connect,
send out thousands of spam emails quickly and then take off
to the next. ISP's just hate spam, just like you do
and if enough is sent, they will quickly disable your
account. We have heard horror stories of ISP's
immediately dumping accounts as they will say you violated
their terms. Imagine how long it will take to find a
new ISP.
b.
Bad people - love finding open networks so they can "surf"
websites that might be tracked. They know that the
authorities might be watching their home networks so they
use others. The issue here is that with enough
traffic, your immediately on the list of some law authority
outfit. Imagine the FBI knocking at your door, taking
your computers and worst case, taking you in. Of
course you have no clue of anything they are talking about.
Not only might you have to find another ISP, imagine
explaining to everyone why the FBI was carrying stuff out of
your house and of course all the legal headaches that might
come with it.
c.
Hackers - Wireless hackers love finding open networks.
Once they are connected, they might as well sit down in your
house with their equipment plugged into your network.
Imagine the information they might find.
Scared yet? You should be! |