Square Mile

laser · 20 September 2005, 09:03

Does any one use Square Mile International Internet at marinas? if so what do u think of the free service? is it any good? and how much is it?

donutsina911 · 20 September 2005, 09:04

when I had my sealine I used the wireless internet service at Southsea Marina - highly recommended

Richard B · 20 September 2005, 09:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by laser

Does any one use Square Mile International Internet at marinas? if so what do u think of the free service? is it any good? and how much is it?

The free service costs exactly nothing, funnily enough! It's excellent, IMHO, 512kbps, and I've sat in Weatherspoons using Brigton Marina's 'net on my iPaq. Premier Marinas all do it, 512 kbps is free, you can pay more for extra bandwidth if you want. Maybe MDL will catch up! Alternatively there's often someone with an unsecured connection broadcasting their SSID

laser · 20 September 2005, 10:29

yeh i have most of portsmouth mapped now with unsecure wireless networks

I was in poole marina last weekend and was gonna sign up but i wasnt sure what i was letting my self in for, wethere i was gonna have to sign up to something after the free offer ends!!

MikeH · 20 September 2005, 10:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by laser

yeh i have most of portsmouth mapped now with unsecure wireless networks

I was in poole marina last weekend and was gonna sign up but i wasnt sure what i was letting my self in for, wethere i was gonna have to sign up to something after the free offer ends!!

Recent court case led to a £500 fine and 12 months conditional for pinching someones bandwidth. Though I can't understand why this should be if the bandwidth owner can't be bothered to secure their network. I can understand it if you hacked into the network, but if you just happened to take advantage of an open hot spot then thats not criminal . . surely?

See this . . .

Richard B · 20 September 2005, 11:49

Sounds like he was involved in a hacking activity known as "war driving" (so called because it can be done from a vehicle, covering different locations).

Also, if he had cracked the WEP encyption (which is easy as the algorithm is mathematically flawed and there are programs freely available on t'internet) then he may have been judged to have been actively hacking.

codprawn · 20 September 2005, 12:05

Yeah but how the hell would they find you??? Government have been pushing wireless without understanding the implications - truly anonymous at last!!!

And the security IS dead easy to get around - when people have even bothered!!!

Jono · 20 September 2005, 12:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeH

Recent court case led to a £500 fine and 12 months conditional for pinching someones bandwidth. Though I can't understand why this should be if the bandwidth owner can't be bothered to secure their network. I can understand it if you hacked into the network, but if you just happened to take advantage of an open hot spot then thats not criminal . . surely?

See this . . .

Sure.. and if you happen to leave your boat unattended for a second and someone decides to use it, so what? Can't be criminal surely...

laser · 20 September 2005, 12:29

hmm interesting. i knew that had happened in america but not in this country.

Poly · 20 September 2005, 12:38

I don't think its comparable to taking someone's boat for a spin. Its possibly more comparable to reading the newspaper over someone's shoulder on the bus!

Since there are people who happily let others "borrow" internet access, and there is no easy way to determine the physical location/owner of most systems I think that if you don't turn off SSID broadcasting or encrypt the network you are essentially saying that the network is "free to use".

If you hijack the connection by downloading huge amounts of data then thats probably akin to stealing the newspaper from someone on the bus. But to simply check your email - I personally think that is acceptable and would happily go to court to fight my case. I would never attempt to hack an ecrypted network, or prevent someone from using their own network (I am aware of one local connection which not only is unsecured, but is using all the default settings including the rather unimaginative password of "password") - but if my machine automatically connects to someone else's network then I consider that acceptable.

MikeH · 20 September 2005, 12:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jono

Sure.. and if you happen to leave your boat unattended for a second and someone decides to use it, so what? Can't be criminal surely...

Well I suppose I was thinking of a situation where you thought the access was free - next to a Marina / pub etc. but you had actually locked on to another unprotected network. Seems you could be charged and would have to plead ignorance/stupidity. However the whole thing woud have been prevented by the private network setting up encryption. Its like leaving your door open or the wheel clamp off the trailer. The insurance Co wouldn't pay out since they would consider you negligent.

codprawn · 20 September 2005, 15:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by Polwart

I don't think its comparable to taking someone's boat for a spin. Its possibly more comparable to reading the newspaper over someone's shoulder on the bus!

Couldn't agree more - BRILLIANT comparison!!!

DGR · 23 September 2005, 12:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by Richard B

...Alternatively there's often someone with an unsecured connection broadcasting their SSID

Erm - that sounds like what I've got.......

If I've got a wireless network, how do other wireless devices (that belong to me

) log onto it if the SSID isn't being broadcast? If I turn SSID off - then the wireless laptop and the X-Box can't seem to find it...

is there a way of pointing them at it? Or am I just stupid?

D...

P.S. You don't have to answer the last question......

roycruse · 23 September 2005, 13:05

you can specify the ssid when creating the connection rather than browse for it

roycruse · 23 September 2005, 13:08

dont know about xbox - but on windows xp you can add a new preffered network and enter the ssid manually

DGR · 23 September 2005, 13:59

Roy,

The laptop still can't see it, even if I put the SSID in manually. Any clues?

D...

roycruse · 23 September 2005, 14:06

Other than checking WEP keys (if you have them setup) to make sure that the one your keying in matches that of the Access point.

No - sorry

What make access point and what make wireless network adapter are you using - and are you using the built in Windows Wireless Network Manager or one that came with the wirelss adapter.

Ill do some experiments here - I have all d-link kit myself - as an alternative to hiding the SSID you could just turn on WEP encryption (if you dont have it allready)

Although it can be cracked with the appropriate hardware/software - it is enough to stop the average casual user from getting on your network.

DGR · 23 September 2005, 14:09

Roy,

I assumed that the wireless router would update without switching it off - clearly not!! I turned it off then on again (

) and it seems to be working fine now.........

Thanks for your help!!

Dylan...

P.S. Linksys wireless router/gateway thingy, and whatever it is on a Dell Laptop.

roycruse · 23 September 2005, 14:13

Ok cool - i was going to say - the easyest way to do it is to have your router/acces point set to broadcast the ssid - then set up your clients - then change the setting to hide the ssid - job done...

Richard B · 23 September 2005, 14:31

There's a third action to take which is a good idea - once you've got all the wireless PC attached, lock down the access to specified MAC addresses only.

These levels of restriction prevent three different vulnerabilities:

Turning off the broadcast of SSID stops your wireless access point shouting "here I am" to all and sundry. This is the most basic step, and you should always, always do this. It stops automatic detection by roaming wireless users, but a determined hacker can still "snoop" on your connection.

Using WEP (Wired Equivalency Protocol) applies a very weak encryption to all your data that's transmitted across the airwaves. It's very easy for a hacker to crack this, though. So never do your on-line banking from a wireless laptop. You are just giving it all away to anyone snooping. Scarey, heh?

Locking down your access point to specified MAC addresses (the unique IDs on each of the wireless network adapters on each of your own PCs) stops an unauthorised PC attaching to your router and accessing the other machines in your house and/or your internet connection. Hackers can still "snoop" on your broadcated data though (see previous two points).

HTH!