Wireless routers open to hijacking

There is no doubt that getting a free wireless router from an internet service provider is a bonus.

But would the ISP’s customers think of it as a bonus when they realise that in the last year alone, three and half million people have admitted to piggy backing on the back of someone else’s wireless router to get onto the internet.

There are all sorts of problems with piggy backing.

There is the potential of ID fraud if the hijackers can see the user’s banking details etc and there is also the more serious problem of the hijackers visiting sites where file sharing occurs.

There are some serious implications here with privacy, security and just plain theft issues all raising their heads.

It is true that router users are getting more perceptive as to what can happen, but are they doing anything to protect themselves?

Research would suggest that they are not.