Is it an offence to use unprotected networks?

The government's aim of installing broadband in every home will not be achieved with existing legislation.

Source : L'Atelier BNP Paribas

The laws designed to limit the fraudulent use of WiFi connections are slowing down the spread of mobile broadband. At any rate, that is what researchers at the British University of East Anglia say. They have studied the legislation of the United Kingdom, the United States and some European countries. At present, the law prohibits any use of unprotected networks without the owner's prior permission, with the aim of protecting the owner's connection against data piracy and limiting computer fraud. However, the people conducting the study claim that the legislation is now out of date.

:: Breaking the law without realising it

According to the publishers, many WiFi users do not make their networks secure, either as a deliberate choice or out of indifference, that is to say by accepting parameters that are configured by default, knowing that some appliances such as the iPhone connect themselves to available networks and move without warning from the mobile network to the WiFi. Many users therefore regularly connect themselves to open networks, while many well-informed web surfers use international systems such as Fon to share their wireless connections. "Technically speaking, a lot of people are breaking the law", says Daithi Mac Sithigh, "and many think that using an open network is not a criminal offence".

:: Eliminating "white zones"

Moreover, Internet connection-sharing is beneficial for people who live in rural or isolated places and often have no web access. It is one of the particular objectives of the British Government to ensure that every home has access to broadband between now and 2012. "However, it isn't easy to encourage users to commit to it if the law is not precise enough about what is legal or illegal" Daithi Mac Sithigh continues. "Of course, computer piracy and bank fraud must be considered as crimes", he says, "but if they want the use of WiFi to become widespread in the country, the law will have to be changed."