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Confessions of a Wi-Fi Thief

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the is-that-a-bandwidth-in-your-pocket dept.

Michelle Shildkret from Time wrote in to tell us about a story about "the ethics of stealing Wi-Fi. Many of us been guilty of the same crime at one point or another — according to the article, 53% of us at least. But how guilty do we really feel? As it is officially a crime to steal wi-fi (Title 18, Part 1, Chapter 47 of the United States Code, which covers anybody who 'intentionally accesses a computer without authorization or exceeds authorized access')."

2 of 849 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Not a thief - depends by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    It depends from country to country:

    • In Singapore you can be arrested for using an open access point because it is not clear that it was set up for you to use.
    • In Germany you can be arrested for having an open access point because it is clear that you have set it up for others to use.

    Ahh.. the logic of law.
  2. Does the law really say this? by feenberg · · Score: 5, Informative

    Here is a link to the actual law:
    http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode18/usc_sec_18_00001030----000-.html

    In addition to "intention" there seems also to be a requirement for damage or fraud, or revealing atomic secrets. I don't think it is obvious that using a wi-fi router based on a DHCP reply is improper under the law, although the syntax of the law is complex. Walking up the front walk of a home to ring the doorbell isn't necessarily trespassing, even without permission.