As a nice gesture? So someone passing by can check their emails?

To avoid the need for long and complicated passwords?

To avoid the expense of replacing network hardware that won't connect to WPA

To carry the door analogy further. My mate has a van that gets broken into so he has had security plates fitted on the door. He lives in the inner city in a high crime area. The folk that live round me have not modified their cars in the same way.


Seriously WEP is more than enough for areas not brimming with terrorists and or students. If you are in a block of flats with your WiFi being seen by dozens or even if your next door neighbour has a kid who has very pale skin and a 1337 T-shirt I can see some point. For Mr and Mrs suburbia though it is not an issue.

My dentist keep all dental records on paper. Maybe yours does the same.


On a side issue, are PCs any less secure than Macs when it comes to WiFi? I have often "borrowed" a signal when out and about but I have never been able to "see" other computers on the network.

Bit of a 'piece of string' question tbh. The wireless network is not defined by the clients that are connecting to it so it's no easier to break into a wireless network that has PC's on it than one that has Macs on it. If the wireless network is secured properly, it's still quite tricky.

However, once you're on the wireless network, then you're talking about OS security. There are a few hacks which will affect both Macs and PCs equally. The one where you pose as a DHCP server and send out corrupted packets for one; both PCs and Macs if not up to date are equally vulnerable. However it's fundamentally true that there are more 'OS specific' network based attacks around for Windows than Macs. Once you're on the wireless network, you're effectively 'one hop' away from all the computers on it, you just have to have the right tool and the right tool is easier to find for Windows than Mac OS, but personally I believe both do exist.

It always come down to the same thing really - if your wireless network is secure and your computers are kept up to date, it will be hard to hack into your computers by any means, including over the wireless. If your wireless network isn't secure but your computers are up to date, it will be slightly easier and if your wireless network isn't secure and your computers aren't up to date, expect all your sensitive data to be available for sale on the web. This is (IMO) true regardless of the specific OS your computers are running.

Jon

Why? You only have to type it into each device once, and if you forget it, you can log onto the router and look at it...

You mean once every time you come back to your computer don't you? If you have your computer secured to lock down after a few minutes of not being used. You would not want to leave your computer on in case someone comes into the room and accesses the data on it. Physical access to the computer is the real risk surely?

No, I think he means once.

Unless Macs work differently (I wouldn't know) - once you've detected the wireless network, you connect and it'll ask for a password. You put it in, and it'll remember it. Once you've done that, connecting with that computer will be the same whether you have security enabled or not.

The login/screensaver passwords are a different thing altogether.

Setting up security is so easy and hassle free, I really have to wonder what this question is about.

Good post.

1) I think in my case it is about the fact that some of my kit just did not want to live on a WPA network and so I am forced to stay with WEP at least till I get some new gear.

2) Setting up security never seemed "easy and hassle free" to me. If I am honest it confuses me quite a bit.

3) I like the idea of my mates sharing my network when they come round (most have smart phones).

Well, WEP is better than nothing (just), it won’t stop anyone skilled or determined, but it will stop any casual drive by hackers and the like.
To give you an idea of how it can work, we use wifi at work – there’s three guys here with laptops, as well as four smartphones (including one iphone). They have put the password in ages ago, and now connect to our network seamlessly. I doubt any of them can even remember how to enter the passwords anymore, never mind what the password actually is.
We also regularly have visitors (clients and the like) coming in to the office, that require internet access. I tell them the password, they connect to our router, enter the password, and they’re in. Easy and seamless.
The only complicated bit (and it’s not even really that hard, IME) is actually setting up the router and password in the first place.

Unfortunately not, my dentist definitely only keeps computerised records.

Peter.

On Macs this is optional. The first time you log into a particular wireless network, it requests a password to connect. On the same dialogue box there is an tickbox to 'save this password in my keychain'. The keychain is essentially a central repository for passwords and tickets and the like.

So you can tick the tickbox and the system will remember your password and never ask again. Some people prefer not to do so, as obviously saving passwords to a known place is a security loophole. However the keychain is stored in an encrypted form and you need to enter your account password to be able to view anything in it.

Jon

1. I also used WEP a while back because my old laptop and DS didn't like WPA. I no longer have these devices, so I now use WPA. Your original question which I was addressing was "Is there much point in having a locked WiFi network?". WEP is an imperfect lock, but still better than leaving the door wide open. Most war drivers would move on to the next open wireless, since it's still so common.

2. Well it's pretty easy on a PC. It asks you for the password the very first time you connect, and you type it in and forget all about it.

3. Some of my mates have my wireless saved on their portable devices. KW has it on his iPhone for example, but I trust him not to give it to our neighbourhood terrorists. If I have lots of people using it, then I simply change it to a "guest" password for the duration of the party. If I had regular parties with WiFi enabled guests then I'd probably plug in my spare router to give them restricted access, but that's because I'm a network geek.