The Ethics of Stealing a WiFi Connection

Posted on January 16, 2008 by C Johnson
Advertising, Culture, Industry, Tech

It is my considered opinion that fine folks at Arts Technica deserve a Pulitzer Prize. Their recent article “The Ethics of ‘stealing’ a WiFi Connection” blows the baloney out of the idea that accessing WiFi is a black-and-white crime and is one of those rare, shining moments in internet journalism where you just want to stand up and salute.
The thing is, it’s very common for people to mention ‘stealing WiFi’ in the same breath as ‘pirating movies.’ But accessing open WiFi connections and pirating movies have about as much in common as night and day. More than that, most new goodly gadgets, like the iPhone, come ready to connect to open networks … and yet doing so is considered illegal in some places.

But should it be?

“ChiFi” and “Wireless Philadelphia” are both working hard to make their respective cities the most connected ones in the nation. Los Angeles isn’t far behind with a study underway to explore the feasibility of a citywide WiFi program as is San Francisco. The way these cities see it, citywide Internet access is the future: it can foster a sense of community as well as contribute to the general wellbeing of the citizens. (Wireless Philadelphia asks the question would the US be 49th in world literacy if children had Internet access?)

What about the argument that accessing open WiFi is detrimental to the host’s wireless connection? According to Technica, this is also something of a red herring as not everyone who accesses a neighbor’s WiFi connection has the intent to illegally download movies and music … some just need to map quest a restaurant for the night.

And what about those of us who deliberately leave our wireless access points open for the benefit of, say, the starving college student or struggling artist that can’t afford the added expense?

Arts Technica’s bottom line is that if you don’t want someone to drive your car you don’t give them your keys, so why should it be any different with your internet? Secure your access points if you don’t want someone checking their email on your account. And if you’re a bandwidth hitchhiker, do your homework to make sure that it’s not against the law in your city … for the time being, anyway.

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