Dec. 1, 2019 - WPA (When Passwords Attack)

Transcript

17 comments

Jan

Of course, Jan could've printed out a handy-dandy Wi-Fi QR code for Tor to scan, but why make this easy?

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Happy Thanksgiving to all readers celebrating, and travel safely!

Shockwave07 • 12/01/2019

Jan is afraid of those internet cooties...

N7: • 12/01/2019

If all else fails, start at the upper left corner of keyboard and work your way down

Adam • 12/01/2019

Got an on off switch on mine, it is super handy! "wifi quits working, hardline slow as molasses, flip flip. 45 seconds later, EVERYTHING IS AWSOME!" XD

Freezer • 12/01/2019

Anything over 32 characters is paranoia.

typhoon • 12/01/2019

This is so very VERY close to home ...

I set up Internet and eventually added Wifi around when WPA2 kame around. Of course I use max length encryption passwords, randomy generated too. Using all available characters. And it worked pretty well - until my nephews came around. They simply typed it into a mail and sent it to each other, including, helpful as they are, their grandfahter.

Katnik • 12/01/2019

Well gee, how hard is it to type p a s s w o r d ?

Kaelgren • 12/01/2019

Beware the Clippy, and shun the frumious.exe.

Noone of consequence • 12/01/2019

Wait... is Jan's network openly broadcasting? That's insecure!

But to be honest, some phones have just plainly cannot handle hidden networks. I am not sure about the reason though.

I wonder how Jan's appartament would look like, if he cared about real-world security to the same level as he does with his network.

ProGen • 12/01/2019

When I was fixing up this house, found a wifi router set to defaults. Figured out it was one of my older neighbors. She said it was often slow. What she didn't know was that at least 64 different computers had been using her internet, but she only had one laptop. I helped her lock it down, and then heard a bunch of people in the apartments behind her house complained the free wifi had been turned off. The apartments didn't have free wifi.

Josh • 12/01/2019

You can also optionally use inexpensive NFC tags with the WiFi data in them, which you can stick, for example, under the table or computer desk. (That's what I do.) This has the added advantage that someone can't share pictures of it on Instagram! As for rebooting the modem, mine's on an UPS to withstand power outages, so I can also just power cycle the UPS to restore Internets.

LionkingCMSL • 12/01/2019

My router is secure and on a UPS. My router password is easy to figure out if you know how I think. ;=3

Panther • 12/02/2019

That's what happens when you've learned computer with Wolf : forever life trauma with some functions . Poor Jan ^_^"

michael • 12/02/2019

I have 500MB. Laptop connected by wire, wife with password. Wouldnt mind neighbours to use it. Only maximum 2 families close enough.

Aaron • 12/03/2019

@Noone of consequence Actually, hiding an SSID is no more secure than broadcasting it. Every device still knows that it's there; it's only the users that are left in the dark...sometimes. My Windows 10 laptop shows them by default.

The difference is that a device also has to guess the name to be able to connect. This may seem like an improvement, but seeing that it happens before they negotiate their capabilities, it runs at the absolute slowest speed allowed. A bunch of devices trying to guess your name can create an unintended Denial-of-Service attack.

Also, if your device is set up to connect automatically to a hidden network, and you take it to an airport, park, concert, or other public place where a hacker has set up shop, the hacker's "router" (maybe a phone in his pocket running a custom hotspot) can respond "yes" to ALL of those requests, no matter what the guess was, and now you're connected to him. Your device is now his, and then you put it back on your own network...

Robin Bobcat • 12/04/2019

Having a wifi QR code by your door is the sign of an excellent host.

Having a separate visitor-only account on the wifi is the sign of a prudent host.

eric bloedow • 12/13/2019

i just checked...my wifi is a sort of cheap one with a pre-made password...16 digits. i also remember a story where someone got so annoyed at his neighbor's crappy security he actually changed his neighbor's password to something like "useabetterpassworddummy!" or maybe he changed his network name to "stoptryingtousemywifi"...

2bit Marten • 12/14/2019

It's amazing how FEW attempts to connect I get from random 'users' with one of the many names of death for my router. And unless your MAC addy is on my whitelist you're getting nowhere fast. Guests are only allowed in the guest pool and the two shall not touch.

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