WiFi piracy rife in Scotland

Authorities in Scotland have been warning about the level of WiFi piracy throughout Scotland, stating that consumers have to be far more careful about leaving their WiFi connections unprotected.

A recent warning has been issued to broadband users in Scotland by authorities who are concerned over the level of WiFi piracy in the area. According to a recent report police authorities in the area have said that criminals are using consumers’ broadband WiFi connections to commit criminal activities, and that these connections are being used by a wide range of criminals including paedophiles and fraudsters.

Authorities are concerned that many consumers are failing to secure their WiFi connections properly and that this is akin to leaving their doors unlocked for anyone to gain access to. Many people have already fallen victim to crime relating to WiFi connection hacking, and authorities fear that there could be at least one unprotected connection in every street in the country.

An official from the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency said: “You are leaving yourself open to exploitation by criminals. Someone might want to go online and access indecent material, distribute child abuse images, launch a web-based attack or use a stolen credit card. Their motive may also be political as they may want to have a go at an organisation or the Government. Or it could be some form of hacking or fraud in the knowledge that when an investigation kicks off it is not pointing at them – it is pointing at the person whose address has been exploited.”

He added: “The internet provider will point the investigation team at you, the designated and recorder user of the particular IP address at the time of the offence. The police may arrive at your home with a warrant to search, seize and examine your computers and for a period of time you are likely to be the suspect in a criminal investigation. And this is all because your failed to take some simple steps to secure your Wi-Fi connection. That’s why it is critical that we close this gap because we are providing criminals with a platform to launch their activities across the internet, significantly increasing the chance of avoiding detection.”

Source – Daily Record