Sharing WiFi

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SCPD

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Hello:

I'd like help with methods and procedures to keep a laptop on a shared wifi private.
A few of us neighbors are sharing wifi.
Just want to keep what I do with my laptop out of any one else's business.
Not sure if any of the others even have the ability to be that intrusive, but like to be proactive.

Thanks.
 

KB0VWG

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You should use strong passwords on your shared drives.
More the secure the better, but you are sharing a network with others so it wont be totally secure.
kb0vwg
wqoi992
 

questnz

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In your case I would :
Enable password in user profile
Disable sharing printers and drivers in network settings
Access router and enable network isolation if there is such option
Get free VPN as already suggested, download free VPN client from here Download VPN Gate Client

Chris
 

CapStar362

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second quest's suggestion. put passwords on the folders of your laptop. disable sharing of printers and any of your assets on your home side.
 

mitbr

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I personally would not do this. Is it your network you are sharing with others? There are plenty of people much smarter than you and I that know their way around networks and would likely cause damage no matter what you did to protect the network. That's why companies spend millions on networking specialists and security IT people to keep the bad guys out.

If it is your IP address to the net you are sharing there are other issues to consider, is it a breach of your internet providers rules to do so? If someone does some bad stuff IE porn etc.. the authorities will come knocking on your door first, do you want this kind of hassle I know I wouldn't.

Just some thoughts.
Tim
 

frazpo

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I personally would not do this. Is it your network you are sharing with others? There are plenty of people much smarter than you and I that know their way around networks and would likely cause damage no matter what you did to protect the network. That's why companies spend millions on networking specialists and security IT people to keep the bad guys out.

If it is your IP address to the net you are sharing there are other issues to consider, is it a breach of your internet providers rules to do so? If someone does some bad stuff IE porn etc.. the authorities will come knocking on your door first, do you want this kind of hassle I know I wouldn't.

Just some thoughts.
Tim

+1 on that.
Not sure if the saving of a few bucks would be worth the risk.
 

questnz

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Gentleman, of course sharing WiFi is not ideal but it is no difference when flatmates share one Internet connection in the house or students sharing WiFi in the dormitory. Our friend asked advice how to secure his laptop. By implementing suggestions already give here he will MINIMIZE risk of privacy breach but NOT eliminate 100%. No difference when accessing shared WiFi in public places. Lets assume that good neighbors know each other and none of them using penetration testing tools on the network to spy on each other. Protect all of them from external threats are different matter again

Chris
 
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mitbr

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Gentleman, of course sharing WiFi is not ideal but it is no difference when flatmates share one Internet connection in the house or students sharing WiFi in the dormitory. Our friend asked advice how to secure his laptop. By implementing suggestions already give here he will MINIMIZE risk of privacy breach but NOT eliminate 100%. No difference when accessing shared WiFi in public places. Lets assume that good neighbors know each other and none of them using penetration testing tools on the network to spy on each other. Protect all of them from external threats are different matter again

Chris

There is one difference in what you said, public wifi providers are licensed to provide such by there internet provider . This reduces there liability if someone using there network is caught doing something bad.
Its not likely a group of neighbors have a similar license. Don't get caught the fines are stiff.
Tim
 
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questnz

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Hey point taken, but I am not here to judge our friend about rights and wrongs, morality or legality of "sharing WiFi" with the neighbors. Lets leave this to his conscience. I think most of us just give him advice how to secure his laptop on shared network because where I am sitting this was his question.
If you remove this statement "A few of us neighbors are sharing wifi" you would never know what the setup or arrangement is. His concern was Laptop security and privacy of his data and I think all of us cover this for him.

Have a good day, Chris
 

KB0VWG

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Wyandotte

Just had a question on how you are sharing the internet with others? Do you have a large omni antenna mounted outside, or does someone have it setup that way?
Just asking and don't worry I don't live in your neighborhood. lol'
kb0vwg
wqoi992
 

SCPD

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My hands are tied.

I personally would not do this. Is it your network you are sharing with others? There are plenty of people much smarter than you and I that know their way around networks and would likely cause damage no matter what you did to protect the network. That's why companies spend millions on networking specialists and security IT people to keep the bad guys out.

If it is your IP address to the net you are sharing there are other issues to consider, is it a breach of your internet providers rules to do so? If someone does some bad stuff IE porn etc.. the authorities will come knocking on your door first, do you want this kind of hassle I know I wouldn't.

Just some thoughts.
Tim

If it was up to me, we would not be sharing.
But because it's the wife's family living next door, I'm pretty much screwed as far as saying no.
 

SCPD

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Just a wireless router

Wyandotte

Just had a question on how you are sharing the internet with others? Do you have a large omni antenna mounted outside, or does someone have it setup that way?
Just asking and don't worry I don't live in your neighborhood. lol'
kb0vwg
wqoi992

No, nothing like that.
I got a router, the neighbors on each side have the password to it.
 

QDP2012

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No, nothing like that.
I got a router, the neighbors on each side have the password to it.

Some routers allow you to enable a "Guest" mode (as illustrated in the Linksys example). This Guest mode is intended to keep guests off your local network, but still allow them to access the internet through your router/gateway. This separation is intended to help protect your computer(s) from sniffing-attacks and man-in-the-middle attacks.

If you have this type of feature, then I would recommend that you change your primary network's password and don't share it with anyone. Then also set-up the guest-network and share its password with only trusted neighbors as you wish. If your router doesn't have this type of feature, then you might want to get one that does have it. (Of course, to avoid the risks of wireless networks, you can also connect your computer to your router using an Ethernet cable, and turn off your computer's wireless NIC, and just use the wired NIC.)

There are other steps you can take to secure your wireless router--turn off the SSID broadcast, disallow admin-password changes except from local wired connections, use a long complex passphrase, allow only known MAC addresses (you would need to get your neighbor's and add them to the list). Some routers are dual-band a/b/g/n/ac. If yours is, you could put a passphrase on the b/g/n (2.4 GHz) that's different from the a/n (5 GHz).

The above steps help secure your computer's outer-perimeter (i.e. your network). To help secure your computer itself, be sure to keep the updates/patches current, and use a reputable security-suite that protects in multiple-ways, as anti-virus, and firewall, etc. for complete protection. Also, only install software you trust and that you have directly downloaded from a trusted source.

Hope this helps,
 
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kdean7

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Unless you are sharing from computer to computer, setup a second access point and isolate each other. Something like an open mesh solution would be a good idea.
 

mitbr

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If it was up to me, we would not be sharing.
But because it's the wife's family living next door, I'm pretty much screwed as far as saying no.

Make sure to explain to the misses that the consequences can be severe .A friend of mine did the exact same thing two neighbors shared his connection the isp found out he was fined 10,000 dollars for each illegal connection.
Tim
 

frazpo

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If it was up to me, we would not be sharing.
But because it's the wife's family living next door, I'm pretty much screwed as far as saying no.

I guess it helps with the internet bill huh? Or does it? Tell me your not providing free internet to the inlaws.
LOL

I think we have a push over here guys :)
 
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