Stealing WiFi

I've seen several pieces in the last few days about people "piggybacking" on others' WiFi connections. The most recent was a NY Times article.

I've been guilty of this myself. I was working with a client on an extended out-of-town contract, and always stayed at the same hotel. For some reason this hotel's wireless router was often unavailable, depending on what room I was in. However, the router at the Fairfield Inn just across the parking lot would come in fine, and since it wasn't secured, I'd go ahead and use that.

I got a real chuckle when I was at a business breakfast recently, and one of the speakers - a very nice, straight-up kind of lady - admitted getting in her car and driving through neighborhoods near her hotel to find an open WiFi connection to check her email when the hotel didn't provide that service! The image I had of this lady (who really looks like someone you'd meet in church) "war-driving" around a neighborhood was priceless.

First, I'm appalled that any business-friendly hotel would not have this service. Second, it goes to show how we can all be pushed to marginal behaviors by necessity.

Comments

[Hyu]

hahaha
I am guilty of such action too. Sometimes the router needs to be restarted and I would just use my neighbor's internet. The only thing that I would not do is to use the stolen connection to download large files that will hog the line.

I would use it just for browsing, developing www.2Locals.com , inviting business owners to list their business on it or just checking plain email checking.