WI-FI HOT SPOTS - HIGH INSECURITY - IS IT WORTH THE RISK

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Those Associations who have jumped on the Wi-Fi Hotspot bandwagon, may not be aware that their good friend Comcast is listing their name and location on the Internet for all to see. See the following  FYI:

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REF:  http://hotspots.wifi.comcast.com/ (PLUG IN 33417 IN THE SEARCH WINDOW)

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Wellington A Condo Association Incorporated

114 Wellington A,
West Palm Beach, FL 33417

xfinitywifi

Indoor

         Government / Library / Other

…………………………………………….

Coventry J Association Inc.

240 Coventry J,
West Palm Beach, FL 33417

xfinitywifi

Indoor

Office Building

…………………………………………………….

BARBARA BUSINESS INC

200 Dorchester I,
West Palm Beach, FL 33417

xfinitywifi

Indoor

Government / Library / Other

…………………………………………………

WINDSOR A ASSOC

16 Windsor A,
West Palm Beach, FL 33417

xfinitywifi

Indoor

Government / Library / Other

…………………………………………………….

What this "Government / Library / Other" is all about, I cannot begin to imagine.

Now for a few thoughts as to what this blatant violation of your privacy may lead to:

1)    The most obvious problem is that outsiders, now that they know where you are,  will connect to your public gateway and hog the bandwidth and slow down the Internet connection speed of your authorized users, like from across the street in the trailer park. 

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2)    Another obvious issue is that visitors might be able to interact with computers and other devices on your personal network (wired or wireless) since everything connects to the same gateway device.

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3)    People locate Comcast hotpots via an Xfinity app or through the Xfinity hotspot locator site. (see above) I would be concerned about my address being broadcast by the app or the website.

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4)    What if a guest,(or a unit owner in your building) using the Internet connection in your Association, does something illegal (like download pornography)? Something so bad that law enforcement agencies get involved. This has come up many times before and is, perhaps, the most important reason not to share your Association Internet connection. To the outside world, all computing devices in your Association look the same. That is, they share a common public IP address (an IP address is the unique number that identifies a single entity on a TCP/IP network). Nothing I have read says that XFINITY WiFi guests are assigned their own public IP address. If they are not, anyone offering the service from their Association, runs the risk of men with guns knocking on their door, for the illegal actions of one rogue guest, or owner.

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5)    And even if Comcast can relate any illegal activity to their customer who was a guest on your home router at 9:56pm on Tuesday, would you trust one of the most hated companies in the U.S. to have your back in this case? That there are no detailed explanations of how this works just makes one more doubtful. 

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6)    Finally it must be noted, XFINITY WiFi is not limited to Comcast customers, making the task of identifying the real perpetrator of illegal activity that much harder. 

7)    There are two ways that anyone can hop onto your Association system: a free trial and a short term access pass. Bad guys with stolen credit cards can get online for an hour ($2.95), a day ($7.95) or a week ($19.95). Bad guys without a credit card can use two free sessions of an hour each. 

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Please do not risk the dangers of this Internet horror story waiting to happen, wait for and vote for real and secure Village wide Wi-Fi
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Dave Israel
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