Wireless vigilante group

Hello all,

I am planning on starting a sort of 'Wireless Security Group' in my area. The concept is quite basic; we go around in our laptops, search for insecure wireless networks, and then if we find open ones stick a note in thier mailbox explaining what thier vulnerabilities are and how to fix it. Also we would give them a web-based e-mail account to send questions to if they had any. We want to be as anonymous as possible for obvious reasons, but we also want to be able to help people who are willing to fix their problems.

What's the point of this post?

I was personally wondering if there were any legal implications doing this? I mean obviously we are trying to help people, however I am sure there's going to be one ***** in the bunch.

Things to know before feedback:
No, we are not looking to break into any ones WAP and screw everything up, laugh, and say here's how to fix it... We are simply going to use Netstumbler to see if the point is open or not, and possibly if they are using WEP, urge them to use something a little less easily crackable perhaps.

Basically our group wants to encourage others to educate themselves on thier wireless hardware/software and secure it.

Feedback and ideas are greatly appreciated. :cool:

Legally, there's nothing wrong with doing that (see this post for the details): unprotected APs are in the unlicensed radio bands, and listening to them is no different from listening to a radio station. Keep in mind that not everyone may appreciate your efforts, though :)

"wireless vigilante group"... does that mean we can have a wireless lynching?
I am so fond of lynchings.
:cool:

Lynching is SO 1800's :)

This IS the 21st Century ........................

Don't we have WWW controlled rifles out there ??
Might as well get SOME use out of 'em :D

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Keep in mind that not everyone may appreciate your efforts, though

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I know that I would not... "vigilante" oh please, what right minded, goodie two-shoes type of individual would want to screw up such a god-send in exchange for such a minor ego boost. Your evil!

Lol, cut out the 'vigilante' crap then hehe. All I'm interested in is raising awareness, I mean from my very desktop I can connect to two WAPs that are open and unencrypted....

... and no I don't live in an apartment complex... yet :D

Why don't you make a business out of it? :)
That's what I did - there's nothing like showing someone how easy it is to steal their bandwidth and then hearing them beg you to fix it! :D

Lol, thats exactly what my dad said. Unfortunately, with working a full time and a part time job (starving college student here) has taken up a lot of free time. We'll see what happens tho, you never know. Thanks for the feedback. :cool:

Why not just post flyers with FUD on them. Then put your voice mail number on there.

Secure them for them at a small fee.

Anyone who doesn't call... go change their SSID to "secure_me" or "im_watching_you".
Could be fun. :)

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Originally posted here by THE RADICAL
I was personally wondering if there were any legal implications doing this?

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Originally posted here by Negative
Legally, there's nothing wrong with doing that

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Whoa, whoa whoa!!!

There absolutely are legal implications!

It is illegal to place anything in a mailbox that has not gone through the mail.

Even though you paid for it, installed it, and it resides on your property, the United States Postal Service technically owns your mailbox. Federal Regulations designed to protect the mail prohibit anyone other than a postal carrier from placing anything in a mailbox.

If anyone knows the Federal Code on this, please post. I can't find it right now...

If its illegal to leave stuff in mailboxes, people break the law all the time in my neighborhood...

Scanned through several sections and didn't really find anything that matched well, but you are welcome to look:

http://straylight.law.cornell.edu/us...sup_01_39.html
http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/w...9cfrv1_03.html

YUP! If you put a flyer in a mailbox, you are breaking a Federal Law. Can't find the actual statement but I remember way back when I was getting $.01 for every flyer I delivered for a new pizza place. Started on a Saturday and on Monday the owner of the place call to say STOP! He was fined and threatened with other legal action. Not too long ago a local girl scoot was "investigated" for placing Girl Scoot cookies fliers in her local neighbor hood mail boxes.

The only reason this ever gets investigated is when someone complains. And OP - Your notes are going to piss a few people off! IMHO

Made me look and found it:

http://pe.usps.gov/text/dmm/D041.htm

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1.3Use for Mail

Except under 2.11, the receptacles described in 1.1 may be used only for matter bearing postage. Other than as permitted by 2.10 or 2.11, no part of a mail receptacle may be used to deliver any matter not bearing postage, including items or matter placed upon, supported by, attached to, hung from, or inserted into a mail receptacle. Any mailable matter not bearing postage and found as described above is subject to the same postage as would be paid if it were carried by mail.

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http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/cgi-bi...l=453&page=136

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Section 1725 does not unconstitutionally abridge appellees' First Amendment rights, inasmuch as neither the enactment nor the enforcement of 1725 is geared in any way to the content of the message sought to be placed in the letterbox. Pp. 120-134.

(a) When a letterbox is designated an "authorized depository" of the mail by the Postal Service, it becomes an essential part of the nationwide system for the delivery and receipt of mail. In effect, the postal customer, although he pays for the physical components of the "authorized depository," agrees to abide by the Postal Service's regulations in exchange for the Postal Service agreeing to deliver and pick up his mail. A letterbox, once designated an "authorized depository," does not at the same time transform itself into a "public forum" of some limited nature to which the First Amendment guarantees access to all comers. Just because it may be somewhat more efficient for appellees to place their messages in letterboxes does not mean that there is a First Amendment right to do so. The First Amendment does not guarantee access to property simply because it is owned or controlled by the Government. Pp. 126-131. [453 U.S. 114, 115]

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"Whoever knowingly and willfully deposits any mailable matter such as statements of accounts, circulars, sale bills, or other like matter, on which no postage has been paid, in any letter box established, approved, or accepted by the Postal Service for the receipt or delivery of mail matter on any mail route with intent to avoid payment of lawful postage thereon, shall for each such offense be fined not more than $300."

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So, I'd suggest making little flyers with hooks to hang on doorknobs like the Dry Cleaner does.

People will still get pissed, but you won't be breaking any laws ;)

If you really want to piss people off... err scare them...

get yourself a linksys wrt54g and install the sveasoft firmware on it. (you can find the torrent)

Then show them how you can setup your router to basically act as a repeater using WDS.
It'll cut their bandwith down 50% when you're using it and give you a signal of 100% ;)

phish:

That's just plain mean - I LIKE IT!

If you are serious about making money then advertise in a profesinal manner. Personally I don't think it's cute to mess w/ ppl's bandwidth. You might come upon my house and you'll earn a brick through the winshield of your vigilante mobil.

I was just gonna say what 11001001 said but he beat me too it. nothing is illegal with what your doing except for putting unauthorized things in the mail. and i do believe you can get a hefty fine and or jail time for that. but its nice your trying to help.

Hey all, thanks for all the replys. I've decided to just write up an article for my local newspaper basically explaining the issues, the consequences of insecurity, and the ways to secure a wireless network. It seems a bit less of a hassle, plus it would be hard for me to identify what houses are the WAPs since there are so many so close together. I do hope people read my article if it gets published and do something about it. If anyone has some other ideas on how to get the word out post 'em :)

Raise user awareness... all of this has been possable waaaaay before the end of the 90s when it out of no where suddenly became this big and popular topic. Truth is each and every bit of this stuff you read & hear about wireless networking... could have all been covered in the 1980s.

The sad truth is all the talks and presentations at cons out number people actually doing jack-crap. These are the people who'd be airpwn'ed within their first hour of showing up and for every t-shirt sold well... thats just one more joker running netstumbler and pretending to have a clue. If you want to raise user awareness then turn it into a real threat not just another presentation at just another over crowded event solely arranged to sell shirts.

If their wireless network is unsecure/unencrypted, do a quick MitM and redirect all their web requests to a temp page displaying, "you need more security, call/pay me now or die." Or something like that. They will love that. Trust me.

Should I be expecting a sticky note sometime soon? My network is wide open. :p

There's an article in the lastest 2600 talking about a guy who had a hell of a lot of fun looking at his leecher's traffic... Any of you with open networks should have some fun :P The guy could see emails, IMs, everything; pretty funny thinking that the leech thought he was getting free internet with no bad consequences... Till his IM chat with his mistress gets posted outside :P

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Originally posted here by THE RADICAL
I was personally wondering if there were any legal implications doing this?

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If you're using an omni-directional antenna with amp you're probably needing or coming close to have to comply with FCC regs. We have these Laws in place because of the rednecks with too much ampage frying the computers that run power steering etc.. in our cars. The only case I've ever heard of this was in another state, where a truck didn't comply and was traveling on the interstate and caused some housewives to wreck into each other while dropping their kids off in the morning at school. Every time that dumbass Q's up people wreck. The State Popo / HP have ways to triangulate this idiocy. HP tracked him down and in the back he had like 12 Marine batteries in a truck bed tool case! This ******* was cutting everyone out when he Q'ed up! They found a pound of meth in the truck as well. Every redneck thinks he's a chemist and an electrical engineer I guess.

Man in my neighborhood we have over 30 points, used to be 38. The neighborhood down the road has over a hundred. They have their own Internet company; all the houses have antennas on the outside of the house.
Much like this one http://www.creactive-design.co.uk/gf...roadband_3.jpg

http://www.fcc.gov/