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Dear neighbor

I know, it’s hard but it might be a good idea to start encrypting your wireless traffic. You see, I’m as lazy as the next guy. Having to enter a key to use your system is pretty painful, especially when you want to ‘just use the net’.

Trust me, it’s a good idea. Especially when I’m your neighbor; your neighbor with networking homework.

Let me explain, you see in school I took a networking class. Nothing too hardcore, but I wanted to take it because I like the instructor and the topic is interesting. I still like the warm touchy-feely topics from my HCI specialty, but this networking course offers a cold hard contrast to it. Think of it as network security 101, but I digress.

You see, the latest assignment was to demonstrate the vulnerabilities of wireless networking. Now, I’d like to stress that the assignment was to only demonstrate and collect information and not to exploit it. Information that is for the most part free and floating around in the air. Exploiting it would be a different story. When you leave your access point WIDE open with your house address as the network identifier; you are making it way too easy.

Anyway, given that you and I are both insomniacs that tend to stay up later than the usual person I suggest that you start encrypting your wireless traffic because I can see what you’re doing. I can see what you’re downloading, I can see what you’re listening too, and worst of all I can see what websites you’re surfing. Which in your case, ummm isn’t a good thing.

Your neighbor (that won’t be able to look you in the eye anymore),

Ritchie

9:32 am