Poll: WiFi Use and 'Freeloading'

[ShindoL Shill]

Let's say you have a neighbour who's a great neighbour. Not quite Ned-Flanders level, but in that area.
But let's say you find out they're using your WiFi. If you stop them, they won't stop being nice.
What do you do?

 

[Craorach]

Anyone who uses your wifi without asking before hand is stealing from you.

Frankly, why do you have an unsecured wifi network in the first place? Do you live in a magical land of free, limitless, insanely fast, internet connections where nobody is going to try to steal anything from your computer or upload/download/access law breaking content?

 

[Thaliur]

Let's say you have a neighbour who's a great neighbour. Not quite Ned-Flanders level, but in that area.
But let's say you find out they're using your WiFi. If you stop them, they won't stop being nice.
What do you do?

Best course of action in my opinion would be properly securing the network:
WPA2, and a PSK with at least 10 characters (preferably including numbers, upper-case and lower-case letters. Umlauts and special characters don't work with all devices), or EAP, if you have the equipment.
MAC address filtering (I know it can be "cracked" with relatively little effort, but it's like putting one more lock on your door. It might be an easy lock, but it's still more work).

You can also disable DHCP on your router and assign fixed addresses to permitted devices. Again, not an insurmountable obstacle, but one more.

Then you just wait for their reaction, if there is any. Maybe you can come to an "official" arrangement on sharing the network (although that might violate your provider's contract)

 

[tharglet]

If I find anyone using my wifi that I haven't specifically allowed, then I'd change my password.

If it's someone you know, and you think he's only stealing it by accident, maybe help him to get him set up?

Tho I would deffo kick people off that don't belong on my network.

 

[Duol]

Nobody uses my Wifi without my permission.
They could be doing anything with it, child porn, illegal downloading etc. Not something I want to be associated with in any way.

 

[Signa]

Depends on how badly they are using it. Is it just some email and other web page browsing, or is it constant torrents and streaming video? If it's consuming too much, just change/add your wireless password without a word. No need to talk to them about it because they were pretty much freeloading from you. If they really rely on your network, then they can talk to you about it and work out a deal.

 

[Smooth Operator]

If they are very close friends of mine I'll ask them about it, otherwise just lock it all down.

 

[Ruwrak]

Just change the password.
And if they come complain you can always say "But it's my wifi and I don't recall you paying your share of the bill mate."

You can always help them get set up with their own network n suches if you like them enough?

 

[viranimus]

Shoot first, ask questions later. Then kill any left remaining with fire. Then attach one of the decapitated heads to the router antenna as a warning to others.

......what?

 

[madster11]

Depends on if they're a heavy downloader or not.
If they're just chilling checking their email and watching a couple youtube videos a day, they will be using around 1-2% of my total internet download limit each month.
So they'd owe me like $1 a month. I piss that much away so often it's not even funny, so it's not worth the effort.

If, however, they're constantly downloading 2gb+ torrents and do nothing but watch 1080p youtube all day every day while waiting for their torrents to download, i'm gonna be pissed if they end up using like 50% of my monthly download or make XBL or my internet browsing lag.

Illegal activity from them is fine with me - when the police show up at my door, it's all the more excuses for me to have them distracted while my laptops HDD is cooking in the microwave.

 

[Wintermoot]

put a PW on your wi-fi if they want internet they should pay for it.

 

[Liberaliter]

If anyone wants to use my wifi they'd have to literally come into my house. The signal is so weak there is no way my neighbours could pick it up. So in this instance he is welcome to my shitty wifi.

 

[thenumberthirteen]

Just change my password, or failing that limit connections to only the devices I own. I don't do that at the minute in case people come over, and then I'd have to fiddle with router settings. Also there are no other houses within range of my router. Hell I sometimes have trouble just getting signal in the living room.

 

[brunothepig]

Let's say you have a neighbour who's a great neighbour. Not quite Ned-Flanders level, but in that area.
But let's say you find out they're using your WiFi. If you stop them, they won't stop being nice.
What do you do?

So what you're asking is, will I put a stop to them stealing from me, with no consequences to me? It will have no effect on our relationship, it simply stops them illegally accessing my wireless.
My question is, why the hell does hypothetical me not have a password on my router in the first place?

 

[Alfador_VII]

You need better wireless security.

Also, bear in mind that if they're using your connection to download Pirated music or other illegal content, then YOU would be held liable for it.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

I suggest teaching them that WiFi works boths ways and crashing their computer.

 

[Comando96]

Add a password to your router...

Simples.

 

[Savryc]

If you leave your router unsecured then you deserve to have your wifi jacked as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Woodsey]

Tell them to stop, in a nice way.

 

[GeorgW]

Anyone that doesn't have a protected network (123456 as a password counts as unprotected) can't complain when others use it. It's that simple to me.