Comcast thinks it ok to install public wifi in your house

Harry Hoffman hhoffman at ip-solutions.net
Thu Dec 11 12:44:13 UTC 2014


Or, ya know you could just buy your own cable modem and separate AP. Cheaper then renting from Comcast and gives you the control :-)

Cheers,
Harry

On Dec 10, 2014 9:35 PM, Jeroen van Aart <jeroen at mompl.net> wrote:
>
> Why am I not surprised? 
>
> Whose fault would it be if your comcast installed public wifi would be 
> abused to download illegal material or launch a botnet, to name some 
> random fun one could have on your behalf. :-/ 
>
> (apologies if this was posted already, couldn't find an email about it 
> on the list) 
>
> http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/12/10/disgruntled_customers_lob_sueball_at_comcast_over_public_wifi/ 
>
> "A mother and daughter are suing Comcast claiming the cable giant's 
> router in their home was offering public Wi-Fi without their permission. 
>
> Comcast-supplied routers broadcast an encrypted, private wireless 
> network for people at home, plus a non-encrypted network called 
> XfinityWiFi that can be used by nearby subscribers. So if you're passing 
> by a fellow user's home, you can lock onto their public Wi-Fi, log in 
> using your Comcast username and password, and use that home's bandwidth. 
>
> However, Toyer Grear, 39, and daughter Joycelyn Harris – who live 
> together in Alameda County, California – say they never gave Comcast 
> permission to run a public network from their home cable connection. 
>
> In a lawsuit [PDF] filed in the northern district of the golden state, 
> the pair accuse the ISP of breaking the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and 
> two other laws. 
>
> Grear – a paralegal – and her daughter claim the Xfinity hotspot is an 
> unauthorized intrusion into their private home, places a "vast" burden 
> on electricity bills, opens them up to attacks by hackers, and 
> "degrades" their bandwidth. 
>
> "Comcast does not, however, obtain the customer's authorization prior to 
> engaging in this use of the customer's equipment and internet service 
> for public, non-household use," the suit claims. 
>
> "Indeed, without obtaining its customers' authorization for this 
> additional use of their equipment and resources, over which the customer 
> has no control, Comcast has externalized the costs of its national Wi-Fi 
> network onto its customers." 
>
> The plaintiffs are seeking monetary damages for themselves and on behalf 
> of all Comcast customers nation-wide in their class-action case – the 
> service was rolled out to 20 million customers this year." 
>
> -- 
> Earthquake Magnitude: 4.8 
> Date: 2014-12-10  22:10:36.800 UTC 
> Date Local: 2014-12-10 13:10:36 PST 
> Location: 120km W of Panguna, Papua New Guinea 
> Latitude: -6.265; Longitude: 154.4004 
> Depth: 35 km | e-quake.org 


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