[wplug] On the subject of wardriving...

[Drew from Zhrodague]

> Because the laws are new and untested, wardriving is a very grey area.  If
> you want to do it anyway and take your chances, or if you want to do it as
> a form of social protest or whatever - that's your decision.  My only point
> is that that the way the new laws are written, it _may_ be illegal - and a
> criminal offense.
> 
> It's good that this kind of discussion occurs.  These laws are very new, and
> there's a good chance that some of them are very wrong and need to be fixed
> up.  My only point is that you should be aware of them before you go flying
> around town with an 802.11 receiver.

	(sound of can opener)

	I'll agree with everything you said above, and add that if 
wardriving were illegal, everytime you open up your laptop and look at a 
list of networks to connect to, you would be breaking the law for each of 
the entries that showed up in the window, unless it is your AP, or you're 
at a public hotspot.

	Also, the manufacturers of our operating systems, and the wireless 
equipment would be condoning such network abuse by designing the systems 
to operate in such a way that it violates federal laws repeatedly, and at 
all times.

	Gross overstatement? Perhaps, but the only difference is that 
wardriving sometimes involves a GPS.

	Perhaps these things WILL be tested in court, but the only way I 
can see that happening is along the same lines of the other two 
wardriving-related cases: One broke into Lowe's wireless network, and the 
other was doing wireless kiddie porn in his car with no pants on. Both 
instances involved wardriving, yes, but the real problem was the breaking 
in of wireless networks -- and not wardriving.


-- 

Drew from Zhrodague		http://www.WiFiMaps.com
drew at zhrodague.net		Location Based WiFi