California Passes Wi-Fi Guidance Law 204
MrNonchalant writes, "California's legislature has passed a law requiring Wi-Fi device manufacturers to include warnings about security. From the article: 'From 1 October 2007, manufacturers must place warning labels on all equipment capable of receiving Wi-Fi signals, according to the new state law. These can take the form of box stickers, special notification in setup software, notification during the router setup, or through automatic securing of the connection. One warning sticker must be positioned so that it must be removed by a consumer before the product can be used.'"
Considering. . . (Score:2, Funny)
California (Score:5, Funny)
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California has more warning stickers than just about any other state.
Not to mention that it has one of the highest GDPs of any state and is the world's 7th largest economy in addition to being a leader in innovation. Too bad the rest of the states can't seem to learn from California's success.
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Correllation != causation.
And another thing. The cost of warning stickers is inevitably reflected in the product's price. Therefore, the actual effect of this law is to force the consumer to purchase warning stickers that may or may not be necessary, useful,
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Re:California (Score:4, Funny)
Yeah, those idiots in Nevada should get a whole bunch of ocean coastline.
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So that means there's a few people in California that know how to screw over the other 32 million idiots. Like it's that hard to trick a Californian...
Re:California (Score:5, Funny)
I advocate we go down to a single warning sticker on everything - "Please know what the fuck you're doing, or else return this product."
THIS TAG MAY NOT BE REMOVED EXCEPT BY CONSUMER (Score:2)
I'd imagine on wireless equipment there would be a sticker like this:
"WARNING: This box contains wireless electronic equipment known to the State of California to present a risk that you might inadvertently spread your ass cheeks wide open for the world to take advantage of you."
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Personally I think we just did the entire English-speaking world a favor... I highly doubt companies will only put on the sticker and include directions on how to secure wireless routers destined for California, they'll just slap them on everything.
Next maybe we'll clean up the video game rating system... trust me, you'd MUCH rather have us do th
Re:California (Score:4, Funny)
Don't you hate it when there's a sticker or sign that warns you of life-threatening risks?
I mean, sure, now I know that the wood sold by my local hardware store may cause cancer, but avoiding cancer surely isn't worth having to pull little stickers off of a small percentage of the things you buy.
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I've heard others say that too, but I don't see it.
Wood was a surprise to me. The only other place I tend to see it is on signs around junkyards, garbage dumps, packages of engine oil, grease, etc.
So far, I've never seen one entering any restaurants, supermarkets, electronics stores, etc. No Prop 65 warning on my TVs, shoes, DVDs, etc., etc.
What are you doing, and what are you buying, that you're seeing these
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Let's hope the "warnings" are well written (Score:5, Insightful)
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"If someone really wants to use a computer they should at least be able to get in behind the little artsy GUI's and do something with the software, GUI's are for pansy's and if you can't code you lose the right to complain"
Isn't there some responsiblity on the part of the manufacturers who are advertising to these ignorant mom and pops to educate them? Isn't it the respon
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in fact the point I'm going towards is that the companies are going after the ignorant consumers, not the saavy ones. These products are in best buys and walmarts, not just techie computer stores / websites. For example, I have had a few linksys routers. They all come with some crappy 'wizard' software that tries to make everything work for me, but they do a terrible job and d
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Company's goals are "easy" (Score:2)
Now in the case of WiFi setups, I'm not convinced that stickering is warranted. However, it's the nature of the companies selling th
Bad Idea. (Score:5, Insightful)
This idea that people should not share wireless (even when their ISP allows it) is just one more step in wrecking the freedom of the internet.
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Actually a better approach would be to completely lock down the access points that are sold. Then someone who wants to share can make the change to share. Those that simply want to plop down some wireless to connect their home laptop should have it easy. This makes this easy as a toaster for the technologically-challenged, but gives those that want to do something the ease to do it. What we currently have is crappy Windows-like security - what we want to get to is better BSD-style of security.
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Idiot-proof security: (Score:3, Informative)
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When I upgraded my Verizon FIOS service to add TV, the installer gave me a new router: an ActionTec MI424-WR [actiontec.com].
The wireless access point was enabled, but it had 64-bit WEP enabled with a password that looked like it was randomly generated. I switched it to WPA PSK and set my own password, but I was impressed that it didn't default to a wide open access point.
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Mal-2
Freaking California (Score:5, Funny)
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If we're going to start with hypotheticals, I wonder how many people have been killed due to lack of those stickers elsewhere?
If there's a known carcinogen in the area that will affect my health, I want to know it -- then I can make a (somewhat) informed decision about whether I want to take the risk or not.
And... (Score:3, Insightful)
For the cost of all these stickers (physical materials, labor, employee time spent in proper implementation meetings, enforcement), will consumers be one jot safer?
Well intentioned as this might be, it's probably worse than doing nothing at all. If you don't know what wi-fi does you shouldn't be buying it, and a five page manual (even with a cautionary sticker) is hardly going to cover the fundamentals of wireless encryption and firewalling a user needs to approach the security of a wired connection.
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Not every explanation of usage of a product needs to be as thorough as a man page.
I'll do it in one paragraph:
Open the router's configuration page (found at x.x.x.x) and enable WPA. Choose a password that contains letters, numbers, and punctuation. Check the "enable firewall" box on this page, as well.
People who don't
I'm feeling cranky (Score:2)
Congrats. You've just given the wrong instructions for everyone with a Nintendo DS. Not to mention legacy gear with doesn't support WPA.
Choose a password...
Where's the explantion about using the password on devices trying to connect to the access point? Whoops, you mean the instructions need to cover software for Windows, MacOS, and Linux? How about people using multiple access points; where's the explanation about having seperate passwords for each AP?
Not every device understands WPA (Score:2)
And have your Nintendo DS fail to connect to Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection because the DS only understands WEP.
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You'll never get a full, detailed knowledge of the facts from a one-line sticker. But hopefully you will spread the knowledge to the point that people say "why would you need a sticker for something so obvious?" Simply put, it's the sticker that makes it
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Many routers already have a bunch of stickers applied to them that aren't really needed. When I bought my Linksys router, it had stickers on box flaps, the antistatic bag, and on the router itself covering the Ethernet ports that said to make sure to install the software before plugging in the router. I don't know why. The router did not have a U
Receive? (Score:4, Interesting)
The law seems like a good idea (or at least the idea is good, even if the fact that it's a law really isn't good), but having laws regarding technology made by people who don't really know the technology involved seems like a bad idea.
Re:Receive? No! (Score:5, Informative)
The actual law (link to the law text attached to the article) this has no statement that even hints at that. Instead, it clearly and plainly defines those items that will require the warning, and those definitions are not only correct, but quite adequate.
Nice to know that the writers of the law did a better job than the writers of the article.
Also nice to know that my little 'Canary' WiFi detector will continue to be quite legit, and not covered by the law, at all.
--
Tomas
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Funny enough, the word "receive" isn't present in the actual bill itself. Go figure.
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Have you actually read the text of the law, or just the above summary of the law, written by (wait for it...) some journalist who doesn't really know law or the technology involved, and is trying to summarize the law's intent in one quick paragraph?
I'm not saying the politicia
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By that crazy definition, I've got a 3" piece of wire that can `recieve' Wifi signals.
Did you read the full text of the law, and see "recieve" in there, with no definition of it? ... Or are you just taking something some reporter wrote out of context, and acting as if it came from the pens of the lawmakers?
Is it going to be like the solder warnings? (Score:2)
So are these routers going to have little labels in front of the power connector that say "The state of California strongly advises you to take these steps to ensure your network is secure. The other forty-nine states and the manufacturer advise you need only plug and play."
Or will it be like on tobacco and liquor product
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We're going to build a wall and have volunteer Minutemen to keep conservatives out.
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The stupid things republicans do are typically a little different.
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http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article14 837.htm [informatio...house.info]
Hint the more AFRAID BOTH parties can keep us the less likely we are to question the government or the ill effects of corporate globilization.
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Yeah, the 40%+ of the population of California, that votes Republican, is here illegally...
Or do people really not know that California != Los Angeles & San Francisco.
Ignorance (Score:2, Insightful)
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If it saves one PC it was worth the effort!
Re:Ignorance (Score:5, Funny)
(Sorry.)
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Just like the Linksys router I just bought. It had a sticker over the CAT5 jacks that said to install the software CD before connecting.
I had already set up the PC and just wished to use the web based configuration. I didn't install the software. I pointed my browser at the router default IP address and configured from there. Too many items sold assume a Windows only environment and do not list the other options for
Well.. (Score:2, Interesting)
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Manufacturers can solve this problem easily (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Manufacturers can solve this problem easily (Score:5, Insightful)
Just shipping all routers with a pseudo-random long WPA-PSK pre-loaded into each router and a sticker in the user guide telling what the PSK is will go a long way to securing routers.
Anyone who wants to change from WPA-PSK to something else should have the experience to understand the implications of doing that, and if they don't then well... let them suffer the consequences of their actions.
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There's supposed to be Vista support for WPS, WiFi Protected Setup [wifinetnews.com], an attempt at cross-vendor automatic setup.
Warning stickers soon to be mandated on locks... (Score:2)
In a surprise move, the California Legislature passed and sent to the Governor that a bill which will require the placement of stickers on all locks throughout the state of California stating, "Hey, Stupid...if you don't use this thing correctly, someone can easily break into your house!"
* SARCASM OFF *
If the manufacturers of WiFi gear hadn't shipped things in an unsecured state, of course this wouldn't be necessary. My believe is that all hardware and software should be "locked down" out
shipped secure??? (Score:2)
If it is configured with encryption on, what would the password be? 1234? If that is so, inform President Skroob so he can change his luggage combination. It won't be any more secure than no password since anyone can guess the password.
Tha Nanny State (Score:3, Interesting)
Next thing you know, they'll be telling you how much water you legally can use to flush your crap down the toilet. Oh, wait... [energy.gov]
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Yeah. The government sure is awful... Making rules about how much of a limited resource people can use. Or more specifically, making rules about the device which is the #1 consumer of a limited natural resource.
Next they'll be telling me I can't put as much toxic smoke into the air as I want to. Oh wait...
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Water isn't a limited resource as it is fully recyclable and have oceans and oceans of it. There's no such thing as "water shortages". However, it is seasonal. While low flow toilets make sense in Las Vegas, they make no sense in Seattle.
A far better solution than nanny laws is to have water meters and charge by the gallon. Some places in the country simply don't have water meters. Even some traditionally "dry" places don't have them. When you
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Fresh water, is a limited resource.
The cost of desalination are extremely high, and therefore impractical. Give me enough energy, and I can make unlimited ammounts of petroleum too...
Instead of Washington, let me swap Colorado in there, for a more relevant example.
While CO may appear to have a significant supply of water, while NV does not,
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If it is, then so are all of the other "renewable" resources that depend on it. In economic terms all resources are limited. But in colloquial usage a "limited" resource is one that can't be renewed. Like petroleum, iron ore, or real estate.
Fresh water is seasonal. It comes back the next year. Really it does. Even if you have a drought, you still get back *some* water, and the drought won't last more than a few years. I'm not arguing you shouldn't conserve water, because i
*sigh* (Score:2)
What exactly is this law supposed to do. You can't legislate away ignorance or apathy, already we have "warning: contents may be hot after heating" or a cup of steaming coffee with "Warning: Hot beverage may be hot" and the hair dryer with the warning "Do not use in shower". May I suggest the following on the next election ballot... "Warning: Political canidates may be morons if elected"
I'm telling you the
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You've never had a gas leak. That's exactly how it's done. (Well, usually with a Bic. But the idea's the same.) I agree with your point, but the analogy is bad.
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That's less than half the problem (Score:2)
Computers need to be secured too!
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Better Yet (Score:2)
If there's one type of person worse than the bl
Moo (Score:3, Funny)
SURGEON GENERAL'S WARNING: Internet Usage Causes Predators, And May Cause Pregnancy.
SURGEON GENERAL'S WARNING: Quitting Internet Usage Now Greatly Reduces Serious Risks to Your Privacy.
SURGEON GENERAL'S WARNING: Internet Usage By Women May Result in Fatal Injury and Unexpected Birth.
SURGEON GENERAL'S WARNING: Internet Usage Contains things Harmful To Minors.
Warning sticker to be posted a WiFi hotspots (Score:3, Funny)
Sticker ideas... (Score:4, Funny)
My money's on #1.
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a faraday cage-type material?? You mean like a, uh, conductor?
It is a bad idea. (Score:2)
I testified at the Texas Senate hearings that wanted to require internet filtering software included with each machine sold, saying that, "it is only $1 to add a disk." They forgot that some machines do not include an operating system, that some machines do not include an operating system, that som
Unlicensed spectrum? (Score:3, Interesting)
Lord save us all the day that 2.4 GHz becomes licensed and regulated.
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Give me a break. Unlicensed spectrum already has numerous restrictions, such as transmit power and antenna gain. It's not electromagnetic anarchy in the 2.4GHz range.
Besides, I didn't see anything that explicitly singled-out 2.4GHz... This probably applies to consumer wireless networking equipment that uses FCC-licensed ranges as well.
Warning: This Router May Contain Peanuts (Score:3, Funny)
It is, in short, a reasonable excuse to handle oopsy-daisy! security victims with a socially acceptible level of contempt. "You say you just tore the sticker off without even reading it, ha? Well. Well, well, well."
This empowers geeks. It is a license to be snooty.
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The stickers should really include a note about "If your intent is to provide open access, put )( in your SSID" or something like that.
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This empowers geeks. It is a license to be snooty.
Since when have we needed a licence?
WARNING!!! (Score:3, Funny)
Are unsecured networks that bad? (Score:3, Interesting)
Is it really so bad for home users to have unsecured wireless networks? Personally, I intentionally leave my network unsecured to allow neighbors and passerbys to share. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you, no? Perhaps I'm missing something, but aren't the security risks of having an unsecured wireless network about the same as a computer directly connected to the network (not through a router)? You should be running a firewall on each computer. As for the threat of someone using your connection to do illegal things, that is valid, but I don't think the likelihood of that is great, and if it does happen, would I really get in trouble? I find it hard to believe that I could be thrown in jail for computer fraud or something that I absolutely did not commit.
I don't mind this law much. At worst, its misleading. I think the government is mostly concerned with the last issue with unsecured networks that I mentioned. They don't want to be wrongly accusing John Taxpayer of download child pornography.
Well, couple risks (Score:2, Informative)
This is a bit more sinister... (Score:2, Insightful)
no more open wifi (Score:2)
My poor Mother (Score:2)
Pretty soon you are going to need a staff of people in India to help you run your busy life in America.
That actually does sound like a good law (Score:2)
Coming to a milk carton near you... (Score:2, Funny)
He has been lost for about three years to date, but a few people are still maintaining hope. Police are continuing to investigate his kidnapping by Clueless Politicians and Thoughtless Laws. He was last seen in captivity in a few various places in the U.S., but has virtually vanished from North America. Some say that his attackers have taken him across the ocean to other continents, but sightings have still been becoming continually scarce.
If you know anything of his whereabouts
Not their job (Score:2)
Impact on torts (Score:3, Insightful)
In the long run this will benefit the tech industry. It is much more difficult to sue a manufacturer for a defect in the equipment or how the equipment functions if there is adequate warning. As long as the mythical "reasonable person" would see the warning and read it before using the equipment, nimwits whose unsecured wifi networks get hacked will not be able to sue.
Anticipating responses:
Encryption shouldn't be in hardware (Score:2)
A big reason that WPA2 is not taking over the market yet is because wireless cards do WEP encryption in firmware, and you can't upgrade them. A regular user cannot spend the time researching to find the exact firmware update needed for their particular wireless card. Compare with putting encryption into the operating system, where you could get WPA
Best Warning Label Evar (Score:4, Funny)
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When I'm supporting people, sometimes I'll get to a point where they have to install something with the defaults.
I'll go "ok, you'll have about 5 - 6 screens, just agree to everything it gives you" and use the time to start working on typing up the incident...and it NEVER fails that every screen the
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