Question of the Week: Due 12/5/2008

[250 words are due by 5:00 PM on Friday, 12/5/2008.]


Here's the question: Do you think that using other's wireless access to the internet without telling or asking them is OK? Or, do you think that the owner of the wireless access should take steps to secure it? What is the danger from hackers.

Background: Yesterday, I helped a friend set up her new office and brand new laptop. However, her DSL line was not yet ready. So, we went looking around for wireless connections that were not secured with a password -- and we "borrowed" the wireless Internet of a neighboring law firm. The law firm did not have a pasword on the wireless. Others in the neighbor hood were not passworded also.

Here are some references:

http://news.zdnet.com/2110-1035_22-176189.html?tag=nl.e550

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/07/07/tech/main707361.shtml

http://www.slate.com/id/2109941/

http://money.cnn.com/2005/08/08/technology/personaltech/internet_piracy/index.htm

http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&taxonomyName=standards_and_legal_issues&articleId=323773&taxonomyId=146&intsrc=kc_feat