Ask Slashdot: Best Way To Leave My Router Open?

generalhavok writes "I read the story on Slashdot earlier about the EFF encouraging people to leave their WiFi open to share the internet. I would like to do this! I don't mind sharing my connection and letting my neighbors check their email or browse the web. However, when I used to leave it open, I quickly found my limited bandwidth dissappearing, as my neighbors started using it heavily by streaming videos, downloading large files, and torrenting. What is an easy way I can share my internet, while enforcing some limits so there is enough bandwidth left for me? What about separating the neighbors from my internal home network? Can this be done with consumer-grade routers? If the average consumer wants to share, what's the easiest and safest way to do it?"

Comments

And the best way is: Don't.

[Chris Mattern]

You'll be liable for any excess traffic charges your ISP puts on you. You're letting total strangers into your LAN, which is a security risk. And there's no guarantee at all that the cops will leave you alone. It's an idiotic thing to do.