There is world of difference between open wifi systems (unencrypted - without a password) and systems which have been hacked. The news article doesn't distinguish between them.
An open system is exactly what the name suggests - open. The access point advertises its availability and accepts all connection requests in the same way as one of the QTEL free hotspots. In this case the owner of the access point is making their system freely available.
An encrypted system requires the user to either gain the password (encryption key) through legitimate means or 'crack' the key by a mixture of probing and listening to the access point. The latter is an attempt to gain service without the consent of the owner and is generally illegal[1].
All QTEL (Alcatel) access points are configured to use a system called WEP64 by default. This is known to have serious security weaknesses and can be cracked in about a minute with the correct software. WPA2 can be configured on the access points and provides a much higher level of security but requires a level of technical knowledge to setup.
As a general rule is is best to assume that wireless is insecure and can be eavesdropped without difficulty. Therefore make sure that you don't fileshare anything on your computers across the wireless network that you don't want to be copied by third parties. Likewise ensure that your system is updated and antivirus tools are operating correctly.
Andy
[1] There is a problem in the UK in that there have been prosecutions for 'theft of service' from open access points which is a bit silly as the owners are effectively advertising the free availability of their systems by not putting a key onto it. I've operated open access points in the past and will probably do so again in the future as I am happy to make a limited service for others near to where I live.
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There is world of difference between open wifi systems (unencrypted - without a password) and systems which have been hacked. The news article doesn't distinguish between them.
An open system is exactly what the name suggests - open. The access point advertises its availability and accepts all connection requests in the same way as one of the QTEL free hotspots. In this case the owner of the access point is making their system freely available.
An encrypted system requires the user to either gain the password (encryption key) through legitimate means or 'crack' the key by a mixture of probing and listening to the access point. The latter is an attempt to gain service without the consent of the owner and is generally illegal[1].
All QTEL (Alcatel) access points are configured to use a system called WEP64 by default. This is known to have serious security weaknesses and can be cracked in about a minute with the correct software. WPA2 can be configured on the access points and provides a much higher level of security but requires a level of technical knowledge to setup.
As a general rule is is best to assume that wireless is insecure and can be eavesdropped without difficulty. Therefore make sure that you don't fileshare anything on your computers across the wireless network that you don't want to be copied by third parties. Likewise ensure that your system is updated and antivirus tools are operating correctly.
Andy
[1] There is a problem in the UK in that there have been prosecutions for 'theft of service' from open access points which is a bit silly as the owners are effectively advertising the free availability of their systems by not putting a key onto it. I've operated open access points in the past and will probably do so again in the future as I am happy to make a limited service for others near to where I live.
k thanks