Hackers Threat to Wi-Fi Users
Posted on: Wednesday, 1 November 2006, 12:00 CST
By Sion Barry
Companies and home computer users with wi-fi technology are as vulnerable to kerbside hackers as if they let them into their office with free access to confidential files, research shows. A study from the wi-fi Education Bureau (Web) - titled Watch out, there's a wi- fi thief about - estimates that tens of thousands of businesses in the UK are open to sabotage by kerbside snoopers.
Similarly, a high proportion of home users are unprotected from neighbourhood snoopers who can view all their documents and spy on their online activity.
Commissioned by software and security company Aytel Systems, the survey took a snapshot view of wi-fi [wireless broadband] access points in Cardiff, which revealed an alarming extent of network vulnerability.
The survey comes at a time when wi-fi sales are rocketing. Research from analyst firm GfK revealed that some 380,000 wi-fi units were sold in the first quarter of 2006.
Without entering any networks, researchers took a car trip in the city, using a normal wi-fi enabled laptop to identify countless unprotected computer systems and home computers in the city.
Within one minute of the start point an unsecured wireless connection was flagged up. Using a default password, this system could have been infiltrated say the survey's authors.
After 1 hour and two miles , 550 wireless networks were flagged in the business area, 60 of which were unsecured.
A subsequent one hour surveillance of a residential area of the city revealed that 320 wi-fi sources were visible, 60% of which were unsecured.
WEB has called for an urgent public information campaign to immediately alert businesses and the public to secure their wi-fi broadband connections at home in the office.
In the interim a free downloadable guide has been posted by WEB at www.secureyourwificampaign.org, to show people how to prevent their networks and home pcs from being snooped.
Pete Patel, managing director of Cardiff-based Aytel Systems, said, 'Unsecured wireless connections leave both businesses and residential properties open to hackers, who are potentially able to use internet connections and access personal documents without being traced.
'This is another potential source of identity theft.
'Part of the problem is that routers are supplied as 'plug and play' and people do not realise the security aspects of this.
'Many routers are therefore left without password protection and can be accessed even on a palm top.
'Our advice to home users is to immediately shut down their home wi-fi and consult their router manual in order to protect their system from outside access.'
Aytel warns that once kerbside hackers enter wi-fi networks they can change passwords rendering users unable to access their own computer systems. Hackers can also download information using the unsecured network. IP addresses can be scanned and admission gained into shared networks. People can even be locked out of their own servers.
(c) 2006 Western Mail. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.
Source: Western Mail
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User Comments (1)
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Posted by wifikracker on 10/20/2007, 17:26 The Internet is ours. We own it. We have full Control. WIFI hacking will never be secure against well known hackers. If it is transmitting it will be received. If it has been scrambled, it can be descrambled. Firewalls are no longer 100% safe. They never were safe. People have even used wireless phone transmitters for DSL going to there modem. That has already been expolited. All it takes is a modified dsl modem and linuix and there dsl has been cloned! Able to surf the web as if it was it's own connection! |
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