Carol was kind enough to send me a link to “Del. Myers proposes jail time for using neighbor’s unsecured wi-fi“. Apparently, one of Maryland’s less enlightened State Delegates, LeRoy Meyers of Washington and Allegany Counties, proposed legislation making it a crime to make use of an unsecured wireless network without permission. Fortunately, the proposed bill died in committee based on the recommendation of the Public Defender’s office.
I could go on about the problem, but ars technica hit all the good points. I just find it hard to believe that using an open wireless network without permission is so bad, especially when the network is wide open and named the default for that vendor’s wireless device.
Thanks for making Maryland stand out with such a ridiculous proposal, Delegate Meyers!
#1 by Cham on March 26, 2008 - 9:19 am UTC
Let me get this straight. Some yutz, like my neighbor 2 doors down, gets a wifi connection. He leaves it open for whatever reason. I sit inside my home, at my desk, and my computer picks up his connection without my knowledge (or maybe with my knowledge), and Delegate Myers wants to call me a thief? Go ahead and pass that law, I’d be the first one to offer myself up for prosecution.
If you have wireless then it is your job to either secure it or enjoy meeting your neighbor’s computers as they pick up your signal. My neighbor looks like a smart guy, if he really minded he would have done something about it by now. With people dying around here on the streets from gunshot wounds and stabbins, I am sure the nice public defenders and the prosecutors have much better things to do with their time.
#2 by JJT on March 26, 2008 - 11:05 pm UTC
Cham: Actually, the penalty is enforced on the user of the open access point. My issue is that if one cannot take the preventive measure of securing their wireless access point, if the access point is open, it becomes very similar to the problem of “the commons.”
In any event, Meyers claimed this was for protection of folks, but I just think he was trying to bust the folks using his obviously wide open access point. If he did not live out in Western Maryland, I would head out and see if his access point is still wide open. I bet the SSID is still named “linksys”.
#3 by Paul on March 27, 2008 - 12:55 am UTC
Don’t knock linksys, it is by far the best free nationwide WiFi network!
#4 by Cham on March 31, 2008 - 8:22 am UTC
Western Maryland, that explains a lot. Doesn’t this guy have a bear to kill?
#5 by Cham on April 2, 2008 - 7:44 am UTC
I was thinking about this, this morning. I had a hunch that ole Delegate Myers just had to be from Allegany County, where the state of Maryland stores the extra stupid, sure enough I am so incredibly right it’s not funny.