Open wireless networks can be freely accessed
Legal expert says law does not forbid use of neighbour's open WLAN network
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By Esa Mäkinen
I turn on my laptop computer at home and click open the list of wireless Internet networks in range.
A long list of funny names of WLAN networks appears: Motorola, Tuula, Wlan-ap, Galileo.
My computer informs me that one of the networks is open for use. It is owned by one of my neighbours. If I were to choose it from the list, and had my computer connect with it, I would get onto the Internet for free.
At this point, a law-abiding person might ask whether or not it is permissible to use a neighbour's Internet connection without permission.
Or what about in the city? If a wireless broadband network is in range, is it permissible to use it?
Probably yes.
"If the owner of the network has left it without protection, the starting point would likely be that the network can be used", says prosecutor Antti Pihlajamäki, who is familiar with information technology crime.
Pihlajamäki says that no law actually forbids the use of an unprotected network. Using a freely available network does not even constitute a break-in: an open network is literally open.
Pihlajamäki would not say that there is a loophole in the law, but he feels that this is definitely a grey area.
In Britain, using someone else's wireless network without permission has been against the law since 2003. In late August British police arrested a man who had been standing outside a house with his laptop. He admits that he had used his neighbour's WLAN network without permission.
Leaving one's unprotected WLAN network open to outsiders is not necessarily a good idea. If the owner has not taken the precaution of assigning a password to his or her wireless broadband, and an outsider uses it for unlawful purposes, the owner could possibly face charges of complicity.
The risk is not very great, but if a neighbour illegally distributes copyrighted films on the Internet, the actual owner of the wireless connection could have some awkward questions to answer.
"If the owner of the network has taken an indifferent or accepting attitude, he or she could be seen as an accomplice in a crime in certain situations", Pihlajamäki says.
Leaving a network unprotected could also violate the conditions of the user's contract with the broadband service provider. According to Klaus Nieminen, network expert of the Finnish Communications Regulatory Authority, many service providers stipulate that their subscribers must not share their network with others.
Both Nieminen and Pihlajamäki recommend that users assign a password to their networks to keep outsiders away from it. Password protection is seen as important for the data protection of both the owner of the connection, and that of its user.
In recent years cafes and hotels have been offering customers the use of free open Internet connections. Even some city trams have wireless Internet access.
As open networks are, quite literally, open to anyone, Nieminen of the Finnish Communications Regulatory Authority notes that there are data security issues. It is possible to eavesdrop on unprotected networks.
On the practical level this means that outsiders can peek in and see what websites you are looking at, and what you write in your e-mails. The equipment and software needed for eavesdropping is easily available on the Internet, and they are relatively easy to use.
Nieminen recommends that those who use an open wireless broadband network should use software to encrypt the information that is transferred.
Already now, web browsers have the capability of encrypting information that passes through open networks. This means that a person's bank balance will remain confidential even when it is accessed over an open network. In addition to the encryption, the double passwords used by Finnish Internet banks will prevent the misuse of bank accounts.
Helsingin Sanomat / First published in print 12.9.2007
ESA MÄKINEN / Helsingin Sanomat
esa.makinen@hs.fi
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| 18.9.2007 - THIS WEEK |
 Open wireless networks can be freely accessed |
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