Comcast thinks it ok to install public wifi in your house

Scott Helms khelms at zcorum.com
Thu Dec 11 14:02:29 UTC 2014


All of the members of the CableWiFi consortium have been.

Bright House Networks, Cox Communications, Optimum, Time Warner Cable and
Comcast.

http://www.cablewifi.com/

Liberty Global, the largest MSO, also does it and this year announced an
agreement with Comcast to allow roaming on each other's WiFi networks,
though that is not extended to the other members of CableWiFi at this time.

http://corporate.comcast.com/news-information/news-feed/comcast-and-liberty-global-announce-agreement-to-connect-u-s-and-european-wi-fi-networks


Scott Helms
Vice President of Technology
ZCorum
(678) 507-5000
--------------------------------
http://twitter.com/kscotthelms
--------------------------------

On Thu, Dec 11, 2014 at 8:53 AM, Ryan Pavely <paradox at nac.net> wrote:

> http://bgr.com/2014/05/12/cablevision-optimum-modem-wifi-hotspots/
>
>  I thought cablevision has been doing this for years.
>
>  I had a higher level tech at mi casa within the last two years and he
> suggested their goal was to get enough coverage to start offering CV voip
> cell phones.  "pay a little less, for not guaranteed coverage'
>
>
>
>   Ryan Pavely
>    Net Access
>    http://www.nac.net/
>
> On 12/10/2014 9:35 PM, Jeroen van Aart 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."
>>
>>
>



More information about the NANOG mailing list