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Windows 10 Privacy Concerns
Deozaan:
One thing I'm still unclear on is whether or not WiFi Sense will recursively share your WiFi AP info with your friends and their friends and their friends, etc.
...
-Deozaan (August 03, 2015, 01:23 AM)
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Just found this:
http://www.zdnet.com/article/no-windows-10s-wi-fi-sense-feature-is-not-a-security-risk/
Windows 10's Wi-Fi Sense is not a security risk. Here's why
Yesterday, tech sites went full Chicken Little over a Windows 10 feature that allows you to share your wireless connection without having to give away your Wi-Fi password. If only those alarmists had actually used the feature first...
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YMMV
-Edvard (August 03, 2015, 01:41 PM)
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That article doesn't answer my question(s). All it does is tell the obvious, simple truth that sharing networks is opt-in.
My main concern is this: If I had a guest over, whom I trust enough to give them access to my internet without telling them my password (by me manually typing in my WiFi password on their device for them), what's to stop them from sharing my network with all their contacts?
In other words, yes, network sharing is opt-in, but anyone who has ever had the password typed into their device can opt-in for you. And AFAIK there is nothing in the feature that allows the actual owner of the router--you know, the one who is paying for internet service--to know that the network is being shared. Basically the only thing you can do if you have ever given your SSID password out to anybody is to change your password and never share it again.
My other concern is: If I share my network with Outlook, Skype, and Facebook contacts, and those contacts get access to my network, are they then able to also share my network with their contacts? It seems like the answer is no, but I haven't seen anything officially addressing that question.
EDIT: I just found this in the comments below the article:
This assumes that you, and only you, have that password. fine if you only share your wifi with windows wifi sense users, and fine if they all have un-compromised machines and no custom wifi drivers.
All you need is one goof of a friend who upgraded to windows 10 after you let them use your wifi and you've got the potential for an unknown number of people to get hands-on access to that data (encrypted or not, a custom driver and its not anymore).
That's the thing. The secondary sharing is completely out of your control and VERY easy.
an opt-in on the WIFI itself would be more secure.
key is here: "For every network you join, you'll be asked if you want to share it with your friends/social networks."
EVERY NETWORK YOU JOIN.
not "every network you OWN"
simple start would be to enable a 'group' in your contacts that your wifi is shared with. I know my contact book has a few friends, a few enemies and a zillion busyness contacts.-flowirin
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Deozaan:
I found some answers, my concerns are allayed:
I'm concerned about sharing Wi‑Fi networks. Can you tell me a little more?
Whether you choose to share password-protected Wi‑Fi networks with your contacts to give them Internet access is completely up to you. Here are some important things to know and consider:
* [...]
* When you share network access, your contacts get Internet access only. For example, if you share your home Wi‑Fi network, your contacts won't have access to other computers, devices, or files stored on your home network. If you have a small business that has intranet sites, your contacts won’t be able to access them.
* [...]
* You share with your contacts, but not their contacts. The networks you share aren't shared with your contacts' contacts. If your contacts want to share one of your networks with their contacts, they'd need to know your actual password and type it in to share the network.
* [...]
How can I prevent someone from sharing my Wi‑Fi network password if I decide to manually enter it on their PC?
If you decide to manually enter your password on someone's PC instead of sharing access through Wi‑Fi Sense, make sure they can't see what you're typing when you enter it, and then make sure that the Share network with my contacts check box is cleared before you select Connect.
-http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-10/wi-fi-sense-faq
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I also just tried to enable WiFi Sense for my network and it is asking me to re-type in my password to enable it. So if someone doesn't know my password, they can't share it, even if the password has been entered on their device in the past.
So now I'm OK-ish with the feature. I still wish there was a way to allow only a select group of people from my contacts access to my networks, rather than a blanket "everybody in my contacts" but now at least I could feel comfortable about enabling it temporarily when guests arrive and then disabling it when guests leave if I had to.
KynloStephen66515:
Am I the only person in the world who doesn't have any plans to use this, and will just continue to use a "Guest Network" which I can enable/disable with a few clicks via my routers settings page (It creates a Wi-Fi network that gives zero access to your main one, and because it is broadcasting as if the main doesn't exist, has full security features for the password (WEP/PSK etc) or can be completely open.)
This wifi sharing thing just seems like a completely messed up and complicated version of what I can already do...except with what I can ALREADY do, I don't care about giving anybody the password, because once they leave, I just turn off that Wi-Fi network, and get on with my day.
Deozaan:
Am I the only person in the world who doesn't have any plans to use this, and will just continue to use a "Guest Network" which I can enable/disable with a few clicks via my routers settings page (It creates a Wi-Fi network that gives zero access to your main one, and because it is broadcasting as if the main doesn't exist, has full security features for the password (WEP/PSK etc) or can be completely open.)-Stephen66515 (August 04, 2015, 04:49 PM)
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Use WiFi Sense on your guest network. Extra security without the hassle of having to type in passwords for your guests.
KynloStephen66515:
Am I the only person in the world who doesn't have any plans to use this, and will just continue to use a "Guest Network" which I can enable/disable with a few clicks via my routers settings page (It creates a Wi-Fi network that gives zero access to your main one, and because it is broadcasting as if the main doesn't exist, has full security features for the password (WEP/PSK etc) or can be completely open.)-Stephen66515 (August 04, 2015, 04:49 PM)
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Use WiFi Sense on your guest network. Extra security without the hassle of having to type in passwords for your guests.
-Deozaan (August 04, 2015, 05:25 PM)
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I don't type it in for them...because it's a guest network, I just make the password when I turn it on, then tell them what it is lol - Makes no difference cause once they leave my house, I shut it down, and just change the password the next time it needs to go on...though, it's rare I have guests...so it's rare that I need to do it ^_^
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