How to Take Over a Train Station

ThinkComp writes "Everyone knows that home wireless networks are insecure, but who would expect a major transportation hub to be vulnerable to the same problems? Well, waiting for my friend's train at South Station in Boston, MA, I happened to notice that it was possible to take control of the entire station's wireless network, including its home page and authorization method (free wireless, anyone?)--and those of thirty other businesses throughout Massachusetts, thanks to a few coding errors on the part of the wireless company with which South Station contracted."

Comments

First??

[Anonymous Coward]

Hmm is this the first reply??

-Sarav

first post

[Anonymous Coward]

Wow - first post!

Re:What a waste of bandwidth

[Anonymous Coward]

4.) yeah, your momma is on the top of my todo list!

Re:What a waste of bandwidth

[Anonymous Coward]

cha ching ! jackpot ! bullseye !

Off Button

[CypherXero]

From TFA:
"...for some reason, even though I've asked it not to, Microsoft Windows XP occasionally opts for the best wireless connection instead of my wired ethernet cable, which is faster. When this occurs, I am able to browse the internet using the nearby company's DSL line (for which they are presumably footing the bill), but I usually cannot tell the difference."

Turn off your wireless card, dumbass.

I hope that company's lawyers contacts him...

[Anonymous Coward]

he's a hacker, and he's guilty of at least a misdemeanor and should be locked up. Criminals like this deserve to be behind bars for stealing and vandalism.

this isn't that funnny -- I just reported him...

[Anonymous Coward]

This fella deserves to be locked up for vandalism and theft. He is a menace to society. Locks and keys are there to keep honest people honest; clearly he isn't honest. Would the same fella walk up and start picking a lock -- hell no, he'd be cuffed and dragged off to the clink. Why is this any different? He just violated several state, and perhaps national laws regarding protection of private property, and perhaps even cyber terrorism. I hope he rots in jail.

Commonwealth, PERIOD

[Anonymous Coward]

this single photograph represents the only crack in the wall of security necessary to take control of the entire building's wireless system, as well as at least thirty others in the state of Massachusetts

Massachusetts is a Commonwealth not a state, he is obviously an untrustworthy liar.

Re:What a waste of bandwidth

[Vombatus]

http://www.songlyrics.com/song-lyrics/Butterfinger /Breakfast_At_Fatboys/Yo_Mamma/250418.html

Re:Thanks for the Warning!!

[StikyPad]

What happened to the "terrorists"'s right to life?

Presumably they relinquished their right to life when they strapped on a TNT vest.

Re:That's a stupid question

[1u3hr]

I would expect them to treat their systems contractors like anybody else, as if the lives of people depended on the quality of their work.

Nobody's life depended on wifi access; it has as much relevance to the actual operations of the railway as breaking into a coke vending machine in the station does; i.e. they might lose a few cents from the "security breach" and have to spend a bit more to fix it later; despite the article's attempt to make this sound like TERRORISTS CAN CRASH TRAINS WITH LAPTOPS!!!.

Re:moderators: parent post is _not_ informative

[Anonymous Coward]

you must live in a rather more totalitarian nation than the U.S.

Is that possible?? ... 4 more years !!!

And unfortunately, this has nowadays to be posted AC.....