Cops raid man whose Wi-Fi was used to download child porn
The risks of open wireless and the sleuths who use it
Regcast training : Hyper-V 3.0, VM high availability and disaster recovery
A man recently found a swarm of armed federal agents descending on his Buffalo, New York, home after a neighbor accessed his open Wi-Fi network and used it to download child pornography.
The account, included in a recently published article from the Associated Press, is one of several demonstrating the unintended consequences that come when computer users don't take measures to restrict use of their wireless networks.
A separate man from Sarasota, Florida, the AP said, was similarly raided after someone on a boat docked near his building used a long-range antenna to tap into his internet connection and download “an astounding 1 million images of child porn." And a man from North Syracuse, New York, fell under suspicion of trafficking in illegal videos that were really transmitted by a neighbor.
Even when people try to lock down their networks using WEP, or wired equivalent privacy, their Wi-Fi signals are still under attack. According to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, authorities in that city have moved to seize a man's car after it was used in a wardriving spree that accessed wireless networks and stole harvested user information.
The 1988 Mercedes sedan contained a long-range antenna and a laptop equipped with software for exploiting weaknesses in WEP that were diagnosed years earlier. The unidentified owner is suspected of belonging to a loose-knit group that has burgled more than $750,000 and often uses information lifted from victims' wireless networks to get a foothold.
“Once a suspect has gained unauthorized access to a wireless network, computers in the vehicle can be used to run programs such as port scanning software and password recovery software designed to breach security on machines within the networks,” police told a court of law.
About 32 percent of people in the US admitted trying to access Wi-Fi networks that didn't belong to them, the AP said, citing a recent poll taken by the Wi-Fi Alliance. About 201 million American households worldwide use wireless networks to connect to the internet.
Many pundits have pointed to the AP report as a cautionary tale exposing the dangers of running unsecured wireless access points. But this misses the point. Many people like the idea of leaving their networks open so others traveling nearby have a way to pull down email or check directions. It seems just as easy to draw the conclusion that mere use of an IP address shouldn't be grounds for armed police to raid a person's home.
Home and business networks that transmit or store sensitive financial information are another matter entirely, of course. And for those WEP should be avoided in favor of WPA or WPA2. ®
COMMENTS
Actually... OUR "local police"...
Our cops, actually call the press, and local news-crews, BEFORE they make a "child-porn" arrest, so the media can record the entire "bust/raid". And, then the cops do a "perp walk" (marching the suspect around) for the cameras... publishing the name, address, and photos of the "accused", within hours.
And, based upon the usual "letters to the editor" ANYONE accused is tried, found GUILTY, and sometimes... sentenced to "death" (by the local idiots)... before even a single piece of "evidence" is heard. In fact, some of these IDIOTS were actually demanding the lynching (and death) of the wife of a "suspect" (who the police flatly-stated was in no way involved, suspected, or being further investigated). Our "law-enforcement" aren't just "idiots"... they are psychotic-thugs.
I think, this is part of a bigger "security" picture.
Currently, the "authorities" are trying to promote the legal-fiction that anything that can be done with "your IT property" (stolen, borrowed, or not) is YOUR legal-responsibility. This (along with the boogy-men of; "child porn", "crime", and "terrorism") is being specifically used to justify the entire notion of external-control of your computer, and Internet, usage (such as being forced to run a "trusted" , locked-down, computer that only does what it is allowed to, by various government, and private, interests... as specified by government "regulation", and imposed by your ISP).
Bye, bye privacy, freedom, and rights... Hello, special-interest, police-state.
"It seems just as easy to draw the conclusion...
"...that mere use of an IP address shouldn't be grounds for armed police to raid a person's home."
Yes, but that would involve the use of a bit of sense!
I have no doubt that the Police took great delight in informing neighbours of the reasons for the raid and the arrest to the extent that many will think "well, there's no smoke without fire" and consider that they should tell their kids to stay away from him "just to be on the safe side"...
IT infrastructure monitoring strategies
Agentless Backup is Not a Myth
Top 10 SIEM implementer’s checklist
Steps to Take Before Choosing a Business Continuity Partner
Requirements Checklist for Choosing a Cloud Backup and Recovery Service Provider
