An academic has called on the government to reform the current laws surrounding the sharing of wireless internet access.
University of East Anglia IT and internet law lecturer Daithi Mac Síthigh has said that while UK law makes it clear that it is illegal to use a network – unsecured or not – without permission, the law is less clear when it comes to shared access, according to The Register.
He warned that the government must clarify this uncertainty, especially as one of its current policies is ensuring internet access for all.
"Digital inclusion is a government policy and rightly so," said Mac Síthigh. "People may not have broadband in every road, particularly in rural or isolated areas, and costs of a good connection remain high, so sharing internet access is recognised as a great way of filling in the gaps,"
“Shared internet access has potential social benefits, but it’s harder to encourage people to take part if the legalities are unclear," he said.
Citing the second part of the law surrounding illegal use of wireless internet access – 'does so with intent to avoid payment of a charge applicable to the provision of that service' – he warned that there could be confusion as to what people are avoiding paying for.
"As WAP (wireless access point) admins are not known or expected to 'charge' for the use of their networks, it can only be concluded that the offence is not access to the WAP or the home network, but use of the internet connection (i.e. access to the wider network), therefore evading the 'charge' that the ISP would normally require for connection," he said.
"This is still an unusual approach and one that would seem to owe more to a theoretical analysis of market conditions (would the user have entered into a contract with the ISP for a subscription were it not for the free alternative?) rather than the enforcement of the criminal law."
Advertisement
Related Stories
- Samsung to launch Galaxy Nexus White Feb 7th 2012 at 10:08AM
- Apple ordered to cease iPhone and iPad sales in Germany Feb 3rd 2012 at 3:05PM
- Microsoft UK pricing could rise Feb 3rd 2012 at 12:06PM
- Google Maps fined for unfair competition Feb 2nd 2012 at 4:01PM
- Best Buy to leave UK this month Jan 5th 2012 at 4:08PM
- Facebook blamed for a third of UK divorces Jan 4th 2012 at 10:21AM
- Mary Portas unveils ambitious plans for UK High Streets Dec 13th 2011 at 10:35AM
- US moves to scrap overtime for IT workers Dec 2nd 2011 at 12:14PM
- Google opt-out for WiFi database Nov 16th 2011 at 5:02AM
- Acer's Bobby Watkins resigns Oct 25th 2011 at 11:27AM
Follow Follow this article if you would like to receive notifications of updates.
Add a new comment
You need to be logged in to post comments. If you do not have an account then please register.
Comments
0 comments
There are no comments yet, be the first to add one!