Laptop picks up wireless signal outside of my house?

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meggus31

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I recently got my first laptop and was hesitating getting a router and/or having my ISP come and hook one up. My friend who lives in an apt complex says she picks up someone else's wireless. I found that I can do the same at my house. I think it's great that I can get internet without having to buy a router but if I'm using someone else's signal, does that mean I don't have much security? What could happen to my laptop in using someone else's wireless signal? Thanks
 
Nothing can happen legally, though you are using someone else's connection, with it being an open connection (not needing a password of any kind) it's also going to be more open to hackers. As long as you have a good firewall and anti-virus you should be fine, but i would get your own interenet and have them set up a password setup. Let me put it this way when you use someone else's internet your using up what they are capable of (bandwidth) and if they get charged by the Gigabyte like some people are, your racking their bill up. How would you like that? Sooner or later they may cut you off by activating their passwords and stuff (the passwords are known as security keys). Then your without internet. The safest way is to get your own, while what your doing is ok temporary,look into the internet service providers in your area and compare shop. Hope this helps and have a safe and fun time surfing! I might add, that the law is different in all states, while it could be illegal in one it isn't in another one. So tread carefully. It depends on the state, as some feel that if your dumb enough not to activate your keys then you should have your internet "stolen". They feel that it's hard to steal something when you have it out, why do you think alot of places have wifi? So be careful and ultimately get your own to be at the safest.
 
Lots of network wireless connections require a password key to access to the connection. You can pick up our wireless signal outside our building but you can't use it unless you have the code. Their's may be the same way. You should get your own so you aren't compromising your secured information.
 
it is illegal to steal and yes they can get your information
wireless can be hacked very easy
 
if it is an unsecured network then the person who owns the network may actually be able to see what your doing!! I suggest you get your own router and use your password and make a secure connection, especially since people lose credit card numbers over the internet as well as fraud and theft.
 
The problem is more on their side than yours. You are "stealing" their network and their bandwidth. Truthfully it is not legal to do that.

And, just because you can see their wireless doesn't mean you can use it. If there are secure then you would need their network key to connect.

By a router (DLink DIR-655 is one of the best right now for the money http://www.dlink.com/products/?pid=530) and when you install it follow the directions for making it secure so other people don't tap into your network.

If you have problems setting it up either email me or post to this forum for help. I'll be honest, when I installed it last year it was really simple (and I don't usually read instructions :)).

Good luck.
 
if it is an unsecured network then the person who owns the network may actually be able to see what your doing!! I suggest you get your own router and use your password and make a secure connection, especially since people lose credit card numbers over the internet as well as fraud and theft.
 
The problem is more on their side than yours. You are "stealing" their network and their bandwidth. Truthfully it is not legal to do that.

And, just because you can see their wireless doesn't mean you can use it. If there are secure then you would need their network key to connect.

By a router (DLink DIR-655 is one of the best right now for the money http://www.dlink.com/products/?pid=530) and when you install it follow the directions for making it secure so other people don't tap into your network.

If you have problems setting it up either email me or post to this forum for help. I'll be honest, when I installed it last year it was really simple (and I don't usually read instructions :)).

Good luck.
 
your very lucky to use there network does not matter if its illegal just dont let them know and dont download too much and DONT download torrents if you do you will get caught and you can buy stuff on the internet as long as the website is HTTPS

H - Hyper
T - Text
T - Transfer
P - Protocol
S - Secure

e.g https://www.facebook.com or https://www.paypal.com use Mozilla Firefox 3.0.5 or 3.0.6

and use spyware doctor with Anti-virus and AVG 7.5.524

if you are using Windows XP then install the latest security updates if you use vista then dont install avg 7.5 or 8.0 just use spyware doctor with anti virus
 
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