TELECOM Digest OnLine - Sorted: Re: Take the Trouble to Block WiFi Poachers

Re: Take the Trouble to Block WiFi Poachers

jtaylor (jtaylor@hfx.deletethis.andara.com)
Mon, 25 Oct 2004 22:10:49 -0300

TELECOM Digest Editor noted in response to Monty Solomon
<monty@roscom.com> by writing in news:telecom23.513.9@telecom-digest.org:

> Now what else should I do, or can I do within reason, to stay protected?
> The house next door to me, across the alley to the west is vacant. But
> let's say tomorrow it got rented to 'hackers', spammers and kiddie-
> pornography downloaders; yes, unlikely, but still ... unlike the house
> across the street where distance separates us, the house across the alley
> from me *is* within radio range; a warm, comfortable, off-the-street,
> out of your car hiding place. Is there anything I can do other
> than 'do not broadcast your name' and 128-bit encryption for protection?
> Or is it a needless worry? PAT]

If your access point came with a firewall then set it up so that it'll
only allow access from the card you use in your laptop. You will need
the number assigned to the card called a MAC or "physical
address". Although this can also be spoofed, it takes a much smarter
variety of intruder to sucessfully do this to you, and like burglary,
you don't need to be able to keep the burglars out, you just need to
make it easier for them to go burgle someone else.

[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I just a couple days ago turned on
'access control', as the Net Gear refers to it. I do not know if
'access control' has anything to do with the firewall or not, or just
what the base station is willing to accept/act on. Same difference, I
guess. If the base station is not willing to ask the WAN for some
files to start with, then the files won't be sent. PAT]

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