[ale] heads up - warning - you could be sharing comcast wifi without knowing it

[George Allen]

Easy solution for the technically savy:
https://www.google.com/search?q=5.56+steel+ammo+can
Give it some nice RF shielding, then use your own router.

On Jun 11, 2013 9:48 PM, "David Tomaschik" <david at systemoverlord.com> wrote:

> On Tue, Jun 11, 2013 at 5:17 PM, Ron Frazier (ALE)
> <atllinuxenthinfo at techstarship.com> wrote:
> > Hi guys,
> >
> > I thought you'd like to know about this.  I heard the host on the Tech
> News
> > Today podcast ( http://twit.tv/tnt ) say something similar to the
> following:
> > Comcast will be expanding its wifi network by putting wifi gateways in
> > Xfinity users homes. ... Comcast users will get free access. ... Guests
> get
> > two free accesses. ... If you don't want to participate, you have to opt
> > out.
> >
> <snip>
> >
> > Supposedly, they replace your cable modem with this new wifi gateway
> device.
> > It broadcasts two wifi signals.  You log into one of them and use YOUR
> > service as normal.  Guests login into the other, for free if they are
> > Comcast Xfinity customers, and get two free accesses if they're not
> Xfinity
> > customers.  SUPPOSEDLY, the 2nd connection is independent of the main
> one,
> > and it doesn't reduce your bandwidth.  Yeah, I believe that.  The
> APPARENT
> > plan is to replace all the gateways and enable this internet sharing
> without
> > the customer's knowledge.  That's got to be against the law somehow.
>
> Don't see how it would be against the law.  They're going to replace a
> device they own connected to a service they own with another device
> they own connected to a service they own?
>
> > Now, I know some people willingly share their wifi.  I'm not one of
> them.  I
> > have my wfi encrypted with long ugly passwords.  There are 3 main
> reasons.
> > 1) Any other user on my modem is a potential security risk.
>
> I don't know how they have implemented this, but it would be trivial
> to assign a 2nd public IP (or even NAT through a single
> neighborhood-wifi-network IP) for the 2nd hotspot and route all
> traffic over that.  In that case, a user connected to that has the
> same amount of access as anyone else on the internet.
>
> > 2) It does
> > reduce my bandwidth and performance.
>
> Citation needed.  The biggest limitation to your bandwidth is the
> traffic shaping comcast performs at their head end unit.  If the
> "public" hotspot is shaped separately, then I don't see how it would
> impact your bandwidth.  *Maybe* you could make an argument regarding
> wifi interference, but a 2nd hotspot on your device won't be any
> different from a 2nd device somewhere nearby.
>
> > 3)  If someone else does something
> > illegal while connected to your wifi, the police can ( and HAVE ) showed
> up
> > at your door and arrest you.  You then have to prove you didn't do it and
> > it's a royal mess.
>
> Actually, no, the prosecution still has to prove you did it (at least,
> legally), but yes, I suppose it could cause some headaches, unless
> they can look at wifi hotspot vs private network.  Not sure how that
> would work.
>
> > Regardless, no ISP should be able to enable this type of access without
> the
> > user's knowledge and consent.
>
> On this, I agree.  This should be with the user's consent, but I don't
> see it as a big bad threat.
>
>
> --
> David Tomaschik
> OpenPGP: 0x5DEA789B
> http://systemoverlord.com
> david at systemoverlord.com
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