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October 21, 2009

Two out of five at risk from Wi-Fi hijacking

TalkTalk attacks internet anti-piracy proposals

Carrie-Ann Skinner

Two out of five web users are at risk of having their Wi-Fi connection hijacked, says TalkTalk.

Research by the ISP revealed that five percent of internet connections have no security whatsoever, while 36 percent use WEP, which TalkTalk says is easily hackable. Only three percent of broadband connections in the UK use the most secure form of protection, WPA2.

The ISP is concerned that under new proposals to tackle internet piracy, which are currently being heavily-backed by Business Secretary Lord Mandelson, many Brits could find themselves accused of illegal file-sharing and banned from the web, even a cybercriminal hijacked their Wi-Fi connection to illegally share files.

With this in mind TalkTalk has launched a campaign that aims to ensure Brits aren't disconnected without a trial.

Don't Disconnect Us sets out three major objections to Lord Mandelson's plans; that it by-passes the courts and gives rightsholders quasi-judicial powers, it exposes millions of people to false prosecution since it is based on 'guilty until proven innocent'.

Finally, TalkTalk says it will do little to tackle illegal filesharing since the main offenders will use Wi-Fi hijacking in a bid to avoid detection.

The Don't Disconnect Us website will also allow web users to discover the latest views on tackling illegal filesharing from around the world, a link to a petition on the No 10 website where opposition to the plans can be registered and a forum to discuss the issue.

"There is a lot of opposition to Lord Mandelson's plans on filesharing but there is no single online forum which draws all that opposition together. That is the purpose of Don't Disconnect Us. But we also want to hear from peope who think we're wrong so we can have a full and frank exchange of views," a TalkTalk spokesman said.

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See also: 75% of Brits against cutting off illegal downloaders

Free whitepaper: Phishing for victims - Truth, myth and cybercrime

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