Nosy neighbors

America's Network, Nov 1, 2003

Is your neighbor too close for comfort? Forty four percent of respondents in a recent survey admitted that they would take a peek at their neighbor's wireless network if they had the chance, and one in five wireless users have been able to see a neighbor's wireless network.

The poll, conducted by broadband networking company 2Wire, found that security concerns are the primary reason that users with a wired home network have not switched to a wireless network. Six percent of respondents said they accidentally logged onto their neighbor's wireless network and were able to access the Web and view device names and files.

WIRELESS FEAR FACTOR

Reasons given for steering clear of wireless home networks:

Concerns about security                40%
Concerns about reliability             10%
Cost prohibitive                       10%
Don't need the flexibility             10%
Don't have wireless-enabled devices    20%