sounds like a reasonable suggestion to me...
RiverEly, Winsford Cheshire,
This is smart.
Some of the sentiments raised sound pessimistic and paranoid significantly unaware of the inspiration that brought us the internet they think they need to protect, or is it just traditional self interest surpressing community benefit.
John, London, UK
I think this is a great idea. The fools who think they would be less safe by sharing their internet connection in this way need to understand that their machines are most likely compromised already, and they should be used under this assumption. If you want to work safely online then boot your machine from a "live" linux cd like knoppix.
As for all the people downloading porn on your connection. If someone wants to do this then they would just look for an unsecured wireless router (which a high proportion still are), rather than using this system which requires registration and login.
Finally, do people really believe that a they would be prosecuted if their internet connection was highjacked by a malicious user?. We do still have the concept of "fairness" left in some of our laws. The authorities need to get a lot more sophisticated in they way they track online crime, but not lose sight of the fact that 99% of activity on the internet is beneficial and legal.
Tony Wilson, UK,
For a start most wireless encryption is a joke - the fears you have are already completely exploitable without FON. If they were not, people would just break into your house and steal your personal artefacts - crime happens, it just depends on how easy you make it. Is it not better that this project will encourage people to learn about their network security rather than simply state they don't know how? Think of the people joining it as students in new houses - learning to lock doors and not get robbed, they soon learn.
BT are supporting a fantastic project, the FON brings back the anonimity to the internet that brought so many here in the first place - no, not just 'undesirables'. Not to mention how much we're all going to start relying on WIFI, the idea of sharing your service will sound a lot more appealing when you need someone elses. The fact that an ISP is supporting this is stunning, a lot of ISP's in the US proactively inhibit this behavior!
ps - It's 512kb NOT 512mb
Tom, MK,
It doesn't matter if Fon can seal off the public part, the point is that illegal activities, say music downloading or child porn viewing are traced by IP numbers and people have been prosecuted on the basis that their computer is at a specific IP address so it MUST have been them carrying out the illegal activity (according to the RIAA, MPAA and whatever our equivalent over here is).
So someone comes along and piggy backs off your broadband, doesn't have to be someone in the street, could be a neighbour, and downloads thousands of child porn pics. Where's your defence? My network is secure, but hell will freeze over before I share my wifi with anyone I don't know, simply because I have no control over what they'll be doing with it.
Anne, Romford,
I would have thought that an un-passworded wi-fi network is already shared. If people don't want to share it, then they password it. Simple as that.
To be honest, I don't see why anyone would want to share something that they are paying (an extortional amount of) money for.
This whole thing will just encourage leeching and hacking.
Toby Johnson, Hastings, UK
This is a great step forward. However, people need to be told how to ensure that they will not be exposing their computers to baddies (microsoft's problem). I say this in general.
Rhe FON project has already thought about the potential security problems and are using two different wifi networks on what appears to be one channel. One is encrypted for your private network. The other is not and is the public segment. http://www.fon.com/en/info/security
The response of the people above reflects people not looking into facts and just responding to news articles
david b, Sydney, Australia
Buy a 3G Data card for £10 per month. Job done.
No one accesses my private network, end of story.
What an absolutely stupid idea, I can't believe I'm reading it!
How about we just leave our office doors open so people can come in and use the computers too? That's the level of security risk here.
Stuart Buckell, Worthing,
Yet another scheme that could go badly wrong with the security of our computers put at risk. Most of all how can BT support such a scheme when internet fraud is on the increase. Personally I do not wish my paid for Broadband to be used by passers by much less my system be compromised by any Tom, Dick or Harry who feels they should want an easy way into the system. It is bad enough as it is. I would suggest that all party's take a long serious look at this before going ahead. If they want such a system in place they should invest in relay stations of their own. But then again that would mean paying out instead of getting a free ride on some else's broadband.
Derek Banks, Bournemouth, Dorset
Stay away from my broadband. Like the rest of the country i have a fair use policy clause in my contract that can shut my connection down. To screw myself up is one thing, having someone hijack the connection and shutting me down is something, and will lead to a thumping.
Dennis, London, England
If the market is going to grow as they say and if users are going to use the wifi part of their wifi enabled devices to create the demand for wifi then companies should move in with the hardware and business model to provide this. The general public should not be providing it.
A more attractive model would be to give me free broadband if I let you stick a wap in my house, asking me to share my network and offering me the ability to surf for free at airports (which I don't frequent as a rule) hardly makes me want to sign up to this.
anthony, Manchester, UK
Bt have lost the plot with this scheme, there is no way that I would risk the security of the data stored on the pc's in my network by allowing access to anyone. What next BT, are you going to suggest we all leave our front doors unbolted and house alarms switched off to help the burglars ?
Fred Smith, Liverpool,
It really surprises me that BT is supporting a scheme which has the potential to seriously compromise people's network security.
How many home users know how to limit access to their shared network folders, let alone detect if another user is launching an attack on their systems? Not very many, and it wasn't such an issue when home networks were closed to other people. Couple this with the fact that many people don't even know what a firewall is, and this move starts to look very irresponsible.
Unfortunately, knowing what you're doing won't be a prerequisite of participating in this scheme.
James M, Southport, UK
I will nerver share my connection why!!! is simple you don,t no who is using your connection it could be hackers are criminals stealing your credit card details are passwords its a bad idea
alen, westmidlands,
BT must use the existing BT phone boxes as WiFi hotspots.
That would save the boxes for the future.
Si, Abergavenny, Wales
BT are not being irresponsible. A Fon Router will not be compromising your home network. A FON Router will be MORE SECURE than the WIFI signal its connected to hence if someone were to hack into your home network via the Fon Router then they would have been able to hack your WIFI network ANYWAY. If your worried about security then do not use WIFI.
Luke, Birmingham,
Think outside the box!! It amazes me how a brilliant idea which will revolutionize modern day communications is rebuffed by individuals who raise issues that already have or can be resolved. Keep smiling innovator(s) – I wish I had thought of this one.
Chris Krestovnikoff, London, UK
With cybercrime ever growing in a world becomming more then completely reliant on electronic communication, could in theory cause a shutdown of communication networks for any service using these 'BT or FON' networks. This implies a 'big brother' team are to be monitoring all internet activity and controlling everyone using these services. This is further reiterated by data protection clauses, though is just an oppinion,
joe, asdsa, asdsad
Fortunately Fon is aware that users do not always know what they are doing and very effectively firewalls off the user's home network and data automatically. You are not going to expose your network to the world with a Fon WiFi router.
Vik Olliver, Auckland, New Zealand
sounds like a reasonable suggestion to me...
RiverEly, Winsford Cheshire,
This is smart.
Some of the sentiments raised sound pessimistic and paranoid significantly unaware of the inspiration that brought us the internet they think they need to protect, or is it just traditional self interest surpressing community benefit.
John, London, UK
I think this is a great idea. The fools who think they would be less safe by sharing their internet connection in this way need to understand that their machines are most likely compromised already, and they should be used under this assumption. If you want to work safely online then boot your machine from a "live" linux cd like knoppix.
As for all the people downloading porn on your connection. If someone wants to do this then they would just look for an unsecured wireless router (which a high proportion still are), rather than using this system which requires registration and login.
Finally, do people really believe that a they would be prosecuted if their internet connection was highjacked by a malicious user?. We do still have the concept of "fairness" left in some of our laws. The authorities need to get a lot more sophisticated in they way they track online crime, but not lose sight of the fact that 99% of activity on the internet is beneficial and legal.
Tony Wilson, UK,
For a start most wireless encryption is a joke - the fears you have are already completely exploitable without FON. If they were not, people would just break into your house and steal your personal artefacts - crime happens, it just depends on how easy you make it. Is it not better that this project will encourage people to learn about their network security rather than simply state they don't know how? Think of the people joining it as students in new houses - learning to lock doors and not get robbed, they soon learn.
BT are supporting a fantastic project, the FON brings back the anonimity to the internet that brought so many here in the first place - no, not just 'undesirables'. Not to mention how much we're all going to start relying on WIFI, the idea of sharing your service will sound a lot more appealing when you need someone elses. The fact that an ISP is supporting this is stunning, a lot of ISP's in the US proactively inhibit this behavior!
ps - It's 512kb NOT 512mb
Tom, MK,
It doesn't matter if Fon can seal off the public part, the point is that illegal activities, say music downloading or child porn viewing are traced by IP numbers and people have been prosecuted on the basis that their computer is at a specific IP address so it MUST have been them carrying out the illegal activity (according to the RIAA, MPAA and whatever our equivalent over here is).
So someone comes along and piggy backs off your broadband, doesn't have to be someone in the street, could be a neighbour, and downloads thousands of child porn pics. Where's your defence? My network is secure, but hell will freeze over before I share my wifi with anyone I don't know, simply because I have no control over what they'll be doing with it.
Anne, Romford,
I would have thought that an un-passworded wi-fi network is already shared. If people don't want to share it, then they password it. Simple as that.
To be honest, I don't see why anyone would want to share something that they are paying (an extortional amount of) money for.
This whole thing will just encourage leeching and hacking.
Toby Johnson, Hastings, UK
This is a great step forward. However, people need to be told how to ensure that they will not be exposing their computers to baddies (microsoft's problem). I say this in general.
Rhe FON project has already thought about the potential security problems and are using two different wifi networks on what appears to be one channel. One is encrypted for your private network. The other is not and is the public segment. http://www.fon.com/en/info/security
The response of the people above reflects people not looking into facts and just responding to news articles
david b, Sydney, Australia
Buy a 3G Data card for £10 per month. Job done.
No one accesses my private network, end of story.
What an absolutely stupid idea, I can't believe I'm reading it!
How about we just leave our office doors open so people can come in and use the computers too? That's the level of security risk here.
Stuart Buckell, Worthing,
Yet another scheme that could go badly wrong with the security of our computers put at risk. Most of all how can BT support such a scheme when internet fraud is on the increase. Personally I do not wish my paid for Broadband to be used by passers by much less my system be compromised by any Tom, Dick or Harry who feels they should want an easy way into the system. It is bad enough as it is. I would suggest that all party's take a long serious look at this before going ahead. If they want such a system in place they should invest in relay stations of their own. But then again that would mean paying out instead of getting a free ride on some else's broadband.
Derek Banks, Bournemouth, Dorset
Stay away from my broadband. Like the rest of the country i have a fair use policy clause in my contract that can shut my connection down. To screw myself up is one thing, having someone hijack the connection and shutting me down is something, and will lead to a thumping.
Dennis, London, England
If the market is going to grow as they say and if users are going to use the wifi part of their wifi enabled devices to create the demand for wifi then companies should move in with the hardware and business model to provide this. The general public should not be providing it.
A more attractive model would be to give me free broadband if I let you stick a wap in my house, asking me to share my network and offering me the ability to surf for free at airports (which I don't frequent as a rule) hardly makes me want to sign up to this.
anthony, Manchester, UK
Bt have lost the plot with this scheme, there is no way that I would risk the security of the data stored on the pc's in my network by allowing access to anyone. What next BT, are you going to suggest we all leave our front doors unbolted and house alarms switched off to help the burglars ?
Fred Smith, Liverpool,
It really surprises me that BT is supporting a scheme which has the potential to seriously compromise people's network security.
How many home users know how to limit access to their shared network folders, let alone detect if another user is launching an attack on their systems? Not very many, and it wasn't such an issue when home networks were closed to other people. Couple this with the fact that many people don't even know what a firewall is, and this move starts to look very irresponsible.
Unfortunately, knowing what you're doing won't be a prerequisite of participating in this scheme.
James M, Southport, UK
I will nerver share my connection why!!! is simple you don,t no who is using your connection it could be hackers are criminals stealing your credit card details are passwords its a bad idea
alen, westmidlands,
BT must use the existing BT phone boxes as WiFi hotspots.
That would save the boxes for the future.
Si, Abergavenny, Wales
BT are not being irresponsible. A Fon Router will not be compromising your home network. A FON Router will be MORE SECURE than the WIFI signal its connected to hence if someone were to hack into your home network via the Fon Router then they would have been able to hack your WIFI network ANYWAY. If your worried about security then do not use WIFI.
Luke, Birmingham,
Think outside the box!! It amazes me how a brilliant idea which will revolutionize modern day communications is rebuffed by individuals who raise issues that already have or can be resolved. Keep smiling innovator(s) – I wish I had thought of this one.
Chris Krestovnikoff, London, UK
With cybercrime ever growing in a world becomming more then completely reliant on electronic communication, could in theory cause a shutdown of communication networks for any service using these 'BT or FON' networks. This implies a 'big brother' team are to be monitoring all internet activity and controlling everyone using these services. This is further reiterated by data protection clauses, though is just an oppinion,
joe, asdsa, asdsad
Fortunately Fon is aware that users do not always know what they are doing and very effectively firewalls off the user's home network and data automatically. You are not going to expose your network to the world with a Fon WiFi router.
Vik Olliver, Auckland, New Zealand