Thread: free internet access

yes there is software that does just that and its available on handheld games units like the PSP and nintendo DS so you dont have to have the laptop fired up all the time. The default setups in some OS packages are not so hot and unless you know your leaking bandwidth then you wouldnt bother to check them. (and even if you did and wanted to youd almost need a degree from colander bailers security corperation to work out where all the leaks were and fix them yourself.

Fortunately there are lots of people out there who have already done this and have written proggies to do it for you..

My solution wins out every time tho...

I turn off all the hardware switches to all the networking stuff that doesnt have a cable for me to trip over.

Ok Weeds. Dont the little freebies in life just do it for you.

There are heaps of unsecured networks out there.

Range for wireless can be upto 1000 mtrs. More than likely 5-600 with buildings etc. This signal strength can be reduced by the user but most ppl ramp it up to max.

If your laptop is wireless enabled, down in the bottom RH corner is an icon toolbar. Find the one that is the shortcut to your network. Click it & a box will come up with a few options. One will say - scan for all available networks. Do it.

A list will come up of all unsecure networks available within range. tap in to any one you like - until they stop you.

they can identify your ip address but thats about all. They cant get see exactly who you are. but be advised the sysops or admin can communicate back to your network enabled laptop if you are unsecured. Once you join a network a sysops could access YOUR data.

This process is commonly called 'wardialling' you can get handheld wardiallers that test for networks whilst your walking around town. Young propellor heads ( & some not so young) get a kick out of seeing how many they can score a day.

Yes many people still have lax security - until they have their acct tampered with then they shell out huge $$$$s & learn a very simple lesson.

Go wireless at your own peril. There are 2 simple ways of securing your wireless network & accessing the router will guide you through.

If your accessing you neighbours, when they get back they will be accessing your mums possibly too. So be warned. Unless yours is WEP or WPA enabled you will be unsecure.
Also broadcasting your SSID (Service Set IDentifier)is not advisable.

Check this out for more info to protect mumsy. Click Here[/URL] Securing your Wireless Network

Hope this helps.

hahaha, because I move a lot and it takes time for me to set up my internet connection I take my palm pilot around the street trying to find a connection But i recently found out it is actually illegal to use someone elses even if it is unsecured. I'm sure you won't gte in strife but just a point.

There are even little key rings which can look for networks but they won't tell you whether password protected or not but there are programs as others have said for your laptop or palm pilot etc.

Can they identify you.... yes, but only if they know what they are doing I'd suggest the majority of people would have no idea how too.

I think 1000m for wireless is pushing it... even 500m is pushing it. If i stand outside with either my mac laptop or palm pilot I can't get a signal from my router and I have a very good router. I think 100m would be a realistic measurement. I accept I could be wrong but when my mac connects to my neighbours network I only gte one bar strength and it often drops out and my neighbours router isn't even 30 metres away and only 1 wall.

The owner of the router may be able to get into the files on the computer your using also unless they are protected. SO it isn't just about you finding them and using there network it is all those nudie pics of urself in compromising positions which will get you into trouble.

Draft N capable routers can easily do 1000m.

Current g spec will do 5-600 line of sight.

repeaters increase signal distance. more repeaters = more distance.

Audiophiles with wireless stereos use repeaters to get their tunes house wide & along with that comes their broadband bloat.

Broadcast distance is directly proportional to the amount of telstra wireless phones & microwaves in kitchens & sheds divided by the number of tools on the bench that may leak impedance

My Son turned up one day with his laptop and discovered he could tap into three net works, mine and two neighbours.

Since then I activated the security on the wireless router, and it worked

All the above, whilst very illuminating, only confirms a long held suspicion of mine. Go wireless at your peril. I'm an absolute numbnut in this area, but it seems to me, the possibility of security breaches is just far too great to ignore. Hard wiring seems to be the only way to ensure your privacy, unless you're a whizzbang with this stuff, which I'm far from.

I set up a system at my sister's flat in London - picked up 10 other wireless networks within range. FOUR of these were unsecured. Anyway, her home internet package had not arrived yet so I hooked up to one of the other available ones just to see that everything was working - no problems.

The next day her BT home-hub arrived and I set it up - and protected it. Unfortunately nearly half of the UK are connected using BT home-hubs and hardly anyone re-names them. So her computer just kept connecting to the original, unsecured BT home-hub we first found. Then I realised that I had password protected someone else's hub!

I undid the change and found the right one - which is hard when there are so many to choose from.

More to the point I couldn't believe how many people don't even bother changing the administrator password on their routers! Just guess the IP address (usually 192.168.0.1) then type "admin", "admin" or "admin, "1234" and you will probably have access to reconfigure the device. You can then set their content filter to email an anonymous Yahoo or Hotmail account and hey presto, you know what they're looking at!

In my opinion, if you are stupid enough to set up a home network and fail to protect it, it's like parking your car on the footpath with the keys in and the doors open.

No need to be paranoid, a little common sense goes a long way.

Doesn't take long to RTFM and secure your wireless network.

Once you've got it secured disable broadcast of your SSID (make sure you change it from default too), then nobody will "see it"* anyway.

* "see it" in the broadest sense of the word, if someone wanted to sit outside your door with a wireless packet sniffer they could. Not likely to happen though. Devices and programs that show local if there is a wireless network in range look for broadcast SSID's, if the SSID isn't broadcast they don't even know the network is there.