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I always love reading this type of thread when it pops up every month or so - there are always pretty interesting analogies made and a heated debate or two. But, ultimately, what does the law (at least in the US) say....... It may (or may not) be illegal. There is no cut and dried answer to the use of your neighbor's signal. The legality depends on a variety of factors, such as how much bandwidth you consume, if you cracked a password to obtain entry, and similar behaviors. Now, the ISP may have a case against you, and the ISP may have a case against your neighbor (especially if your neighbor explicitly allows access - this violates most TOS agreements). So, will you get in trouble for using your neighbor's signal to check email, browse a few websites, post to Aximsite, and other bandwidth limited activities? Most likely not. But, if you decide to use your neighbor as your sole internet connection, or use bandwidth intensive apps, or continue to use the connection if asked to stop, or "eavesdrop" there could be some consequences. Ultimately, all you really need to do is use good judgment until some kind of law is passed (which will probably happen when some ignorant Congressman gets mad when someone mooches his bandwidth from his unsecured AP).
Prof-ax
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